Honor Among Indomitable Thieves
by The Wolf That Got Away
Summary: Free of their makers' grasp, the Indoraptors took it upon themselves to claim the empty Earth, and the stars, as their rightful dominion. Their Union stood tall and strong against all adversaries, accompanied by all manners of allies... including a race of 'Parallel Humans'. (I claim no ownership of the Indoraptors from Jurassic World nor the Stellaris game)
1. Chapter 1

**A Lesson in History**

"Mom, I'm home!"

The sound of her son returning home from school gave Amena a much-needed wind down after cleaning up the backyard on her own. Really, how did Raizex came home 25 minutes later than usual?

"Dear son, I am not pleased to know that you're nearly half-an-hour late! What have you done? Shopping? Hanging out with your unpleasant classmates?"

Raizex waved his tail in exasperation, "Please, mom. If you want to hear it, I failed my history exam."

"Oh?"

"Oh yes. Let's face it, I never understand history lessons. My teacher is sooo unbelievably boring." Raizex said, putting off his torso plates and backpack and laid them lazily on the staircase railing before falling down on a leather sofa, clad only in grey shorts. There was a new tabloid today. With his left paws already retracting its claws, the young Indoraptor reached for the new tabloid edition and opened its gadget section, apparently looking for the latest eraphone.

His mother was displeased to see her son being slothful and irresponsible. Letting out a loud sigh, she said "Raizex, for the love of the Heavens, put your things back where they belong! This is the living room, not your bedroom. Also, I don't care if your scales are already shined of not, you WILL put on some clothes or I will dress you like when you're a whelping."

"Crap. Alright, alright, I'll handle it."

"And make sure you study your lesson correctly tonight! I can't afford being called by your homeroom teacher for a second time!"

Under his mother's angry glare, and with a possible threat of not getting his favorite dish tonight, the young lizard immediately scuttled at where his stuff was left cluttered.

He went upstairs to his bedroom, and then settled his uniform plates at where his school items were. His leather backpack went in shortly after.

Raizex then opened his drawers and quickly determine that dark blue clothing would better blend in with his black scales and icy-blue stripe. Good thing they're not overly long; Raizex never really liked long clothes.

Having done with his belongings, he went down to the living hall to find Amena being outside, perhaps talking to the neighbors. Good timing, he thought, as he quickly crept to the sofa and the tabloid he previously left behind.

Hmm, there doesn't seem to be any new eraphone being released to the public this time, the young Indoraptor thought. Most of the world's renowned scientists and experts were being offered a chance to help developing the colonists being sent to the frontier worlds, either to help establish a working wireless network or to determine what resources were mandatory to set up settlement camps before solid building could take shape. Raizex then opened up several other pages, noting that the latest trends of the public seemed to involve space engineering, space colonization, political ramifications which would surface in the wake of colony establishment, and the prospect of meeting extraterrestrial life.

At least one throwaway line indicated that the Indoraptor Union's Grand Fleet was going to expand its size and recruit more personnel, particularly those with keen interest in working on large ships.

Raizex didn't know why, but reading that one line made him grin widely.

 **-x-x-x-x-x-**

"So, what happened after the downfall of humanity, the 'Silence of the Earth', again?"

"Three hundred and fifty days after that, the first members of our species began to learn how to speak, read, write, and count."

"Then another three hundred days later the smartest and wisest of them made a new calendar system."

"Almost correct, son. They started to count days, weeks, and even hours, but no true calendar system was made until Year 7 of OUR calendar. But even then, they, and by extension us, still relied on human calendar customary."

Writing down all the details was easy for Raizex. Memorizing what took place when and where was the hardest part. Thankfully, dinner was still four hours later, so Raizex had some opportunity to fix all of his notes and ask his mom whenever he forgot the lesson's details. Amena kindly extended her assistance in her free time, seeing that the house was already in order, more or less.

"At Year 7, the earliest Indoraptors acknowledged an official calendar system, learn human languages as a means to convey messages and construct a functional but primitive society..."

"Incorrect." His mother alerted from across the table, clicking her claws edgily.

"Pardon?"

"Our earlier civilization could be explained as a mixture of... the Iron Age and the Medieval Age, if the terminologies are accurate, but it was indeed a functional culture. The old ones were able to replicate many kinds of metal and substances the humans once used, but they formulated new chemical substances, medicines and technology that did not exist prior as well. This trend continued for decades until Year 138, when the most intelligent Indoraptors successfully constructed their first computers after fourteen failures."

"Okay, so... not primitive at all?" Brushing sound could be heard as the young lizard belligerently erased incorrect notes before adding the correct ones. The older Indoraptor poured herself a glass of water, but hesitated to drink it.

"Not primitive, due to their knowledge being retrieved straight out of recovered human archives. The humans were definitely out of the term 'primitive'... if you look at their scientific advancement, that is. Their societal progress was... how do I put it, stunted?"

"As in refusing to welcome new ways of thinking?"

"Well, that too, but mostly due to xenophobia and greed."

Raizex widened his left eye as he looked up, "But the humans hadn't found space aliens, had they?"

His mother shook her head offhandedly. "No, xenophobia here came from the fact that the ancient primates evolved different skin colors as a response to living in diverse environments, as opposed to our uniformly black scales with brightly-colored stripes." She snorted a little and continued, "For approximately seven hundred years or so, humanity waged war and violence against each other just because of one side hating the others' ethnicity and skin color, as well as wanting to possess their opponents' wealth and resources. This irrational fear and greed eventually sparked many great wars. As the most prominent historians already pointed out, the human calendar stopped counting when it hit human Year 2035, during which World War 3 ended after fifteen years of chaos. Their most recent information archives went mysteriously missing thereafter."

"After that, some twenty years during the Silence of the Earth, the first of our elders developed sapience and self-awareness, and brought about a new civilization on Earth. And it took three hundred years or more until we succeeded in replicating human-like social order."

A grim nod from Amena, and Raizex returned his attention to his jumbled notes.

"That means..." quickly, Raizex examined his notes for any mistakes, "the so-called World Wars 1 and 2 were started in human Year 1928 and Year 1930 respectively, yeah? The first one happened because someone from one country murdered a duke or prince from another country. Then the second one happened because a mad dictator founded a racist organization that legalized genocide of those who were not _them_. And then in human Year 1945, a declaration of independence was issued by..."

The female Indoraptor patiently oversaw her son's progress in reviewing and fixing everything he wrote in his book. At least there was still three hours' worth of free time before she got to prepare dinner.

 **-x-x-x-x-x-**

"Don't forget to wash your fangs tonight."

"Yes, mom."

"Don't forget to clean your paws after dinner."

"Yes, mom."

"If you want to go hang out tonight, be at home no later than 10 p.m., alright?"

"Are you still using human time calculation, mom?"

"Well, considering that we are speaking in their tongue even after their disappearance three centuries before, what's the difference?"

"Some of my schoolmates said human expressions can be weird and stupid at times."

Amena chuckled at her son's pouting. "Yeah, well, your old lady here never liked those kinds of sketchy younglings."

Dinner time was, to put it mildly, a time that Raizex loved to hate. On one side, Amena always made sure to provide sustenance that was both delicious and healthy, exactly the type of food Raizex needed in his 'teenage' years. On the other side, his mother almost seldom skipped this occasion to 'interrogate' him on what he had done in the daytime. If it's school day, Raizex would be questioned about his activities in and out of school. If it's weekend days, Raizex would be told to go help at his neighbor's garage... and later be questioned on what assistance he provided for the old and slightly forgetful Indoraptor's work place. Really, sometimes Raizex wondered to himself if a protective but hardworking mother was also present during the time of the humans who came before.

"Oh yeah, I've been waiting to ask this; can I enroll in the Grand Fleet Academy once I graduated?"

Amena snapped her head at the question. "Why? As far as I know, neither they nor the colony planets looked for engineers; they already have many."

"You know, I wanted to see what space looks like. I wanted to know... to experience the journey between the stars, being far away from our home planet and into the void. You know what I mean, mom?"

"If you are trying to get hooked up at some space clubs or forming your own space mercenary group, I don't think you'll make it in one piece. Piracy and mercenary groups are thoroughly banned from our species, remember? So did alcohol abuse," the displeased look on Amena's narrowing eyes shut her son up from thinking too much about life on the frontier colonies. Sure, the Grand Fleet had recruitment centers opened up in many places, looking for those who desired a chance to be the first of many to travel through space, but the administrators made a damn sure that nobody was going to abuse this opportunity by forming any illegal and unregulated organizations. Sadly (or not), such decision outlawed unlawful civilian space stations as well.

"If anything, I'd be happy if you take studies on space farming or colony planning. Engineering is pretty much full of more qualified applicants, so maybe you can find strategic position on colony management."

"Space farming?" It was Raizex's turn to narrow his eyes.

"We Indoraptors may have evolved to be highly adaptive to every environment out there, but we still need to eat suitable foods. Do the colonists some favors and help them stay healthy and strong. Or maybe you can assist them in exploring potential landscapes to mine, farm and build cities on. Maybe one day, our species will finally have futuristic cities, the likes of which only existed in human fantasies."

"Why don't I be a soldier instead? That'll be cool, right?" Raizex suggested, eagerly chewing on his steak. His mother pondered about his request for a minute or so.

"What? Like a space super soldier? As long as we don't have alien invasions to worry about, the Grand Fleet doesn't require any super soldiers, or a large number of standard soldiers for that matter. Even the scientists appointed by the Chiefs of our Union already confirmed it; there is a low probability of encountering intelligent aliens out there. And if there is, it'll likely be a primitive civilization."

Raizex growled in disbelief. This idea of being a simple farmer on their colony planet instead of doing some great things to jumpstart its development might as well be...

"I know, I know, you probably think that your old lady here doesn't want you to be a soldier like your father and grandfather, but that is the truth. He and I already made it clear; none of our future family members should carry such a heavy burden if we are not strong enough, or if we feel that we can't be trusted with a big responsibility."

"Especially after the... American Scandal, am I correct? The one involving human cloning and subsequent attempts to turn them into our slaves?"

Raizex watched his mother's paw hanging in the air for a few seconds, "Yes, especially after THAT scandal. You know how our kin hates the humans so much." She drew a deep breath to calm herself before continuing, "You know the reason why we moved here, and why we did everything we could to clean our names. Your dad and grandfather were once trusted with a secret so big it could split the world through wars and distrust. But they realized the secret was harmful to the Union. That's why they let it spill to the public and alerted the Admiralty Board of the Grand Fleet of what their superiors were up to. This plot of bringing the humans back and integrate them within our society as slaves... Your dad and I spent countless days trying to prove that we were not pro-human supporters in the slightest. The Indoraptors are clearly against this idea."

Amena looked up from her fruit salad to see Raizex briefly baring his fangs in disgust before returning to finish up her mangoes.

"No wonder why the Union declared any and all surviving humans to be a 'slaughter-on-site' target."

"No wonder why we feel no remorse stealing everything from them. We all recognized what they had done to the Earth... and what they had been doing to our ancestors and by extension our kin nowadays."

"We hold no loyalty to them."

"And we hold no emotion, no pity, not even respect for them. Your primary grade teachers taught you this, yes?"

And with a nod from her son, the dinner went on in awkward silence.

 **-x-x-x-x-x-**

 _ **EXTRACTING SPECIES PROFILE : INDORAPTOR**_

 _Species Name : Indoraptor_

 _Scientific Name : Indominus raptus_

 _Classification : Reptilian / Chimeric hybrid (artificial organism)_

 _Homeworld : Earth Prime / Terra Prime, Sol system_

 _Preferable Habitats : Continental, Tropical, Arid, Savanna, Alpine, Tundra_

 _Lifespan : ~150 years._

 _Length : 4.5 meters_

 _Height : 2.1 meters (bipedal stance)_

 _Weight : ~50 kilograms_

 _Diet : Omnivore (formerly carnivore)_

 _Locomotion : Facultative biped_

 _General Customs : Egalitarian, militaristic, spiritualistic_

 _Normal Attributes : Quick learners, wary of extraterrestrial encounters (borderline xenophobic), very strong, somewhat communal, adaptive to different environments._

 _Extraordinary Attributes : Natural weapons and armor, Nigh-invulnerability to conventional weaponry_

 _ **Overview :**_

 _Originally conceived as the ultimate bioweapon by the human race (Homo sapiens), the Indoraptor was cloned using an amalgamation of animals, both extant and extinct, with the explicit intent of replacing human soldiers with terrible, robust, and unrelenting army of monsters._

 _In the 21st century, humanity was capable of using multiple classified methods to bring back extinct animals to be used for an array of purposes, including scientific research and entertainment. The most notable example being the establishment of an amusement/scientific park named Jurassic World. It was also the first witness of genetic engineering abuse, where a hybridized lifeform titled Indominus Rex rampaged through the park, killing dozens of visitors._

 _When word reached the masses worldwide that the extinct beasts (then named 'dinosaurs') could be used for warfare and terrorism purposes, genetic research and development were hindered with the declaration of a constitution titled 'Gene Guard Act' which prohibited genetic engineering from being misused. Unfortunately, such constitution only applied in the United States of America. With other nations left hanging on whether or not they followed the US, mafia organizations and bioterrorists were able to smuggle DNA samples of resurrected dinosaurs out of the defunct amusement park._

 _Fast forward many years later, no more than a few months after World War 3 broke out between the US and Russia, rumors spread like wildfire about how both sides were seen unleashing cloned prehistoric beasts to massacre their opponents and innocents alike. These rumors were soon proven to be true with the revelation of a frightening and powerful bioweapon referred to as 'Indoraptors'. These monsters were highly strong and adaptive, to the point of nigh-invulnerability. No known effective method had been discovered on how to safely eliminate the Indoraptors, and if there was, none managed to test it successfully._

 _This nightmare slowly turned back to bite the humans. At first, the bioterrorists noticed unusual behavior among the Indoraptors, predominantly being the capacity to disobey orders (both direct and indirect) and activities which appeared to be mating rituals._

 _This soon became the bane of their illicit business. With the Indoraptors evolving a consciousness on their own, and their habit of laying highly-guarded eggs on unspecified time and places, the humans in time lost control of the abominations. This in turn generated a snowball effect; the world war caused more and more humans to perish and lost their homes, while the cloned dinosaurs and Indoraptors were then left to breed and survive on their own, effectively taking over the planet. All evidence of human civilization was either irradiated from chemical or nuclear weaponry, or reclaimed by nature, before the first intelligent and self-aware Indoraptors rediscovered them. The name 'Silence of the Earth' was coined by Doctor Aizen Samus from the Hagalaz Institute to describe the world's condition for around twenty years without mankind or any sapient life to rule it._

 _In three hundred and fifty years, the artificial bioweapons managed to accomplish the impossible; founding their own society and succeeded where men did not; creating a stable, egalitarian civilization free of racism and discrimination, although they did fell into brief but chaotic civil wars (Indoraptor Years 191 and 302 respectively). Their culture primarily used English language as an 'accepted' lingua franca._

 _Their curiosity and creativity, that were unhampered by political upheaval or limited view of the world, allowed them to advance more in science and engineering than their makers. In only seventy years (from Year 278 to Year 348) they finished assembling their first spaceships, equipped with crude warp drive engine, and blasted off to space in an effort to go further than before. Sol system was thoroughly mapped, its resources meticulously mined, and plans were drafted to colonize potentially habitable planets in a bid to declare an interstellar empire. The scientific community, some of them volunteered to expand the species' knowledge and information archives, engrossed itself in space-related topics, including the prospect of upgrading the warp drive technology._

 _Despite having a government structure comparable to a 'military republic', their Grand Fleet's Admiralty Board held no responsibility over certain aspects of civilian life. Aspects such as education, beliefs, and agriculture were directed by Chiefs-approved Overseers nominated for their aptitude in particular fields of study._

 _As of now, Year 375, four colonies had been founded on four different planets, with drafts on building military stations on crucial star systems under evaluation._


	2. Chapter 2

**An Exercise in Calculating**

"I've told you over and over, retarded fool, if we can't have the microceratus to breed properly on Cognita, we won't be able to properly feed the colonists!"

"Of course we can! All we need to do is let them reproduce normally until the third year, then we give them the hormone growth and BAM! A never-ending supply of meat for the folks!"

"Nonsense I say! Do we even have enough livestock food to keep them all happy? Unless you want to change the animals we're about to transport..."

"You bastards didn't hear what Professor Tuli announced on television, huh? Cognita is a majorly savanna world! The most suitable livestock are gallimimus and protoceratops, while microceratus are optional if not unnecessary. Got it memorized, boys?! Good, now get back to work!"

Another day of harsh morning debate on Hagalaz Institute's hydroponic laboratory. Heavens forgive Atrine F. Walmez, his duty to oversee farming implementation on the first declared colony world of Cognita rarely provided him satisfaction.

Two hotheaded Indoraptors, Kelish Vass and Curton Brom, once again disrupted their mentor's concentration on his job. Truly, colony arrangement had been discussed seriously and fastidiously by all who pitched their hands on it, yet naysayers always had something to disprove or question. Just recently, his impulsive acolytes broke the morning serenity by shouting whose opinion was correct. Now his job was to remind the acolytes what was actually important for their field application.

It was pretty much his morning daily routine.

"I'll say we sent over the dryosaurs to the colony, easier to breed and don't require us to feed them too often. Screw the microceratus, their meat is kind of tough to cook."

"Tell that to the servicemen. They love large meat."

"I'm serious here! They can spout all that jazz they have about dryosaurus being like 'chickens' or whatever the hell humans called them little birds."

Vass and Brom were definitely different from what he'd been promised many years ago. His advisor told him in colorful words on how the two idiots could present new insights on his line of work. What he had in his hands was far from the idealized promises the lady advisor claimed.

Untidy work desks, disregard of the Institute's code of conducts, nearly intelligible paperwork, and most annoying of all the unhealthy habit of bringing up loud arguments in the morning.

His eraphone device vibrated, indicating an important message. Good, it was very likely from the Institute's board of directors, Atrine grimly thought, demanding fast update on the two idiots' up-to-the-minute fuss. Opening it up, Atrine skimmed through the message; seemed to be a revised version of their colony establishment procedure, albeit with one or two new notification added for future protection. Attached to it was an announcement of their ship's departure, sometime after the end of August. The appointed ship's designation was the _USV Illustrious_.

"Boys, listen up!"

"What is it?" Both of the hotheads paid attention.

"I should probably outline our primary schedules once we embark on _The Illustrious_ at the end of Summer season. I just got a crucial info here, directed specifically for us hydroponics designers."

"One, our journey will likely take up to eleven days before we set foot on Cognita, so use that time wisely to prepare yourself and your tools. By the time we land, we are to head straight to a predesigned hydro farm to begin our work. Accommodations are already taken care of; we won't have to sleep in the open. Remember to keep your hands and tools clean, and remember to put them back on their places."

Vass and Brom glanced at each other.

"Two, we are to focus on planting necessary vegetables and fruits, no need to focus on livestock. Once the colony's head of administration gives the green light, we can start importing the selected cattles from Earth. Be sure to have the stables set up by then."

"Three, be sure to judiciously ration the crops. While I don't doubt the prospect of the frontier colonists still owning more than enough food supply to last them for one Earth year, I'd rather not taking chances with possible food shortages. DO NOT play around with this, or I'll make sure both the Admiralty Board and the Institute ban you two from leaving Earth ever again."

At this threat, Vass and Brom nodded their heads quickly.

"Eleven days, sir?"

"Yeah. Be glad we aren't living in the early 300s. Back then, we'd be in space for forty six days. Nowadays, it's only eleven days of travel before Cognita is in sight."

Baring his fangs slightly, Atrine went back at his eraphone, "Fourth and final, in the event of a first-contact scenario with alien culture, do not under any circumstances share the crops with any of the aliens, unless the Union Chiefs and Admiralty Board give the permission. As far as our top biologists could determine, our cuisine might as well be poisonous for aliens, so refrain yourselves from going around offering our food to them."

"Understood, sir. We won't disappoint you," came the unison reply from the two Indoraptors.

"Good. Now get back to work, you two. That problem about your microceratus can come later."

As soon as the two acolytes scuttled away, Atrine breathed a sigh of relief. Hopefully, the following serenity would not be disturbed by another bout of shouting.

 **-x-x-x-x-x-**

"Are there anymore proposals to assess? Any other broadcasts I forgot to hear, or appointments to list?"

"No sir, that'll be all."

Nighttime was approaching fast, or so the disgruntled scientist thought. In five hours or less, late night curfew hours would be active, and unless he had a dire need of emergency, the Union's soldiers would march him back home. No time to visit a good restaurant, then. The dreaded paperwork duty was waiting him down his office, making Atrine sweat in anxiety.

Unfortunately, his advisor's high-pitched voice did nothing to ease the worry. One could say she's useless in administration.

"Good. Go help Curton collect his paperwork. He might've abandoned his memos in his office again."

"Affirmative. Have a nice day, sir!"

Atrine growled in discontent as he watched the female advisor strutted away in suggestive way. Holding back a desire to slap her with his tail, the scientist tapped his feet claws impatiently until the lady disappeared from view. He swore under his breath that he'd definitely go replace her with a more sensible advisor.

Stillness settled in the building as Atrine made his way into his office. He could possibly be the last employee left in the building.

The office was dimly lit when Atrine entered it. At least night curfew hadn't started yet, therefore allowing him to turn on some lights. Atrine removed his work mantle and set it on the guest chair opposite of his chair before sitting down. Getting himself comfortable, he flexed his paws as he set his gaze to the topmost report on the table; a report on Cognita's colony growth. He reached it and gently unveiled the document.

"Let's see... Cognita's development is well over 40 percent. Added with hydroponics, frontier clinic, a working school and power plant, and it'll be 50 or 60 percent, ready for large-scale urbanization. Seems good."

The document didn't speak further in the next chapter, only a short summary of his approved timetable on the planet.

Satisfied, he filed it away before opening a new document.

"Shangri is still under 20 percent. Growth time is estimated to be seven to nine years before expansion could be done... still haven't built its own hydro farm... I'll have the R&D department investigate the matter. Colonists still reluctant to breed a viable population... might not survive for long without immediate intervention..."

Disappointment filled his head. Why did they chose an alpine planet to colonize, he tiredly mused. What the astronomers told the public was that Shangri contained a large amount of precious minerals like titanium, vanadium, and iron. They didn't say about the cold garden planet being a feasible spot for colonization.

Yet foolhardy adventurers still volunteered to be the first to settle the cold, snowy world.

Lest the Chiefs requested swift assistance from the best experts from all available institutes, nothing could be done to accelerate the colony's progress. The scientist heaved a sigh.

Atrine didn't pay more attention as he examined a new report.

"Lemuria seems good, almost approaching 55 percent, with basic hydro farms, basic power plants and mining networks gathering resources in large amounts. Colonists were willing to reproduce in large number... Urbanization should begin in six months or less. Once schedule on Cognita finished, preferably under two years, might want to take Vass and Brom to Lemuria's farms, build stables to breed bucardos and maiasaura. I better make notification to the board of directors..."

A tropical planet, Lemuria soon captivated the attention of the masses as the Union's extrasolar satellites captured more pictures of it. The planet's location might be quite far, but it didn't discourage people from trying to claim it, even the Chiefs gave them approval on that. This time, the hard work and long journey paid off; the planet was more fertile in many ways than Earth, allowing the hybrid lizards to set and upgrade their basic buildings more quickly. Since Indoraptors were already tuned to tropical and sub-tropical climates, it required only a few months before Lemuria transformed into the beacon of the Union's future.

Surprisingly for the Union, the planet's biosphere was perfect for most of Earth's creatures. It was deemed safe to transport some of the Earth's most valuable livestock for the colonists to raise. There were also some petition to have endangered species be relocated to Lemuria for safekeeping, lest they went extinct due to habitation conflicts.

Who knows, in a few decades, the Indoraptors would be able to build imposing skyscrapers on the planet, as long as they have the right manpower and assets.

The last report was enveloped in bright yellow cover. Atrine froze his paws; in Indoraptor culture, one sent a letter or report in yellow color only if there's something highly important or confidential. What could've happened that his consideration was expected?

The answer unveiled itself in a series of detailed satellite pictures and bundles of papers.

"On the other hand, Shrike seems to be... hold on, is this report true? Am I reading... I don't understand... What is this news really? 'Titanic lifeforms detected living on the vast continents of Shrike'... Could this be real? Umm... Regardless, colony establishment was going well, approaching 35 percent and still growing. No direct hazard to expansion despite the abundance of colossal entities on the planet. Grand Fleet, with permission from Chiefs of Indoraptor Union, attempted to safely study the massive creatures, hoping to find practical uses for biology and chemistry subjects. Extending an open invitation to zoologists and environmental analysts? I am actually impressed! Better forward a request for on-site observation to the directors..."

Atrine's eyes lit up in anticipation and amazement.

For hundreds of years, the concept of colossal lifeforms bigger than the dinosaurs lay in science fiction territory. Sea creatures that biologists and paleontologists claimed to grew larger than dinosaurs were still bound by physical laws to some extent. But currently they had proof of massive entities they once considered mythical. And they existed far away from their home planet...

All previous worries about being caught after night curfew were gone from the scientist's mind as he booted up his computer, preparing some important notes as well as searching for more information related to the colony on Shrike.

A quick glance at the clock on his wall indicated that he had some three more hours until curfew. Might as well use the spare time for work, he excitedly mused.

 **-x-x-x-x-x-**

 _ **EXTRACTING CODEX...**_

 _Planet Name : Cognita_

 _Location : Ulysses system (9,2 light years from Sol)_

 _Primary Biomes : Savanna, sub-tropical grasslands, boreal forests_

 _Rotation : 38 hours per day_

 _ **Overview :**_

 _A semi-arid planet with vast open plains and grasslands on its surface, Cognita was the first habitable planet ever discovered by the Union's astronomers after 100 years of observing the stars with their telescopes._

 _The name was derived from an ancient human language, wherein '_ _ **cognita**_ _' roughly translated to '_ _ **known**_ _' or '_ _ **recognized**_ _' in ordinary tongue._

 _While vegetation is irregularly common, the closer to the planetary poles, the denser the forests would be. Precipitation lasted only during the world's four months of cold seasons, and vanished almost completely when the dry seasons rolled in. While the planet's crusts are rich in minerals, none of the minerals were deemed highly prized by the Union's geologists. Its top soil, on the other hand, was speculated to be fertile for agriculture._

 **-x-x-x-x-x-**

 _ **EXTRACTING CODEX...**_

 _Planet Name : Shangri_

 _Location : Wuxing system (14,5 light years from Sol)_

 _Primary Biomes : Alpine forest, snowy mountain regions, sub-tropical marshlands_

 _Rotation : 28,4 hours per day_

 _ **Overview :**_

 _Originating from a forgotten human myth about a paradise-in-the-mountain titled 'Shangri-La', the colony world Shangri was named as such due to its mainly cold and temperate surface, dotted with long mountain ranges with forests interspersed on them._

 _It's discovery was said to be accidental, with novice astronomers allegedly reporting a mysterious planet while surveying blue dwarf stars. Four years to the future, and Shangri was acknowledged as a real planet._

 _Despite the planet's capability of supporting plant life, colonists reported having difficulties in growing Earth crops on the ground, necessitating the need for hydroponic farms. This was very likely to be caused by the planet's lower-than average exposure to heat and UV light. Mining drones deployed on strategic places has gathered substantial amount of rare metals and minerals, boosting interest in developing a full-fledged mining network on Shangri, as well as smelting factories._

 **-x-x-x-x-x-**

 _ **EXTRACTING CODEX...**_

 _Planet Name : Lemuria_

 _Location : Mu system (22,7 light years from Sol)_

 _Primary Biomes : Tropical rainforests, swamplands, temperate forests, arid grasslands_

 _Rotation : 26 hours per day_

 _ **Overview :**_

 _A tropical paradise believed to be a treasure-trove planet, Lemuria gathered massive public interest after planetary surveys sponsored by the Union Chiefs revealed the existence of ultra-fertile soil populated by untold numbers of organisms on the planet. Plans for colonization were swiftly approved in an attempt to claim it before anyone else could, and hundreds upon hundreds of colonists were given thorough demonstration on how to efficiently establish a solid foothold once they landed on Lemuria._

 _The planet was more or less twice larger than Earth, providing more space to construct habitation spots or arcology towers._

 _The name itself came from a long-debunked human urban legend of a lost continent which was swallowed by the sea. Of course, there were many other stories of places that sank beneath the waves such as Atlantis, but since Lemuria was a lesser-known name, the astronomers voted to use it instead of Atlantis._

 _The large amount of forests on the surface gave rise to a wide array of organisms, both docile and dangerous, many of which were speculated to be 100 percent compatible with Indoraptor digestive system. Its fertile grounds were the subject of the proposed mega-hydroponic farms, which were estimated to be able to feed its colonists and other planets' colonists for over a century. The Union's geologists highly anticipated the chance of discovering rare minerals from beneath Lemuria's tectonic crusts._

 **-x-x-x-x-x-**

 _ **EXTRACTING CODEX...**_

 _Planet Name : Shrike_

 _Location : Nabradia system (17,6 light years from Sol)_

 _Primary Biomes : Arid mountain ranges, tropical rainforests, tundra plains, sub-tropical savanna, desert wastelands_

 _Rotation : 46,5 hours per day_

 _ **Overview :**_

 _Unlike the other colony planets, virtually little was known about Shrike other than its lower gravity (0.9 G as opposed to Earth's perfect 1 G) and large size (thrice larger than Earth), allowing the so-called 'titanic lifeforms' to roam the continental world._

 _The colony was largely ignored by the monstrosities, letting it to grow unhindered, although there were worries of the monsters suddenly turning hostile on the Indoraptor colonists._

 _The soil was less fertile than that of Lemuria or Cognita, but nevertheless good enough to grow Earth flora. The vast oceans also provided a source of energy for the colonists' makeshift water generator. Its mineral substances, however, appeared dissimilar to the ones known to the Union, and more proposals were forwarded to bring in more explorers to try and crack the secret of Shrike._


	3. Chapter 3

**The Next Big Thing**

 _Indoraptor Year 378, September, three months after graduation day on Earth..._

Summer season was about to end in one month, but the parents treated it as if the season's end was fast approaching. Businesses were busy filing reports for the Union's Overseers to examine, patiently waiting for their approval. The utility workers finished their jobs as fast as they could, as smooth as possibly, so long as the rainy autumn season had yet to arrive. With most schools having already done with their yearly activities, the Indoraptors were busy getting their offsprings signed up to new schools, drafting them to part-time duties, or even enlisting them to whatever vacant position the Grand Fleet had.

For the moment, Raizex felt content at being jobless. At least until the autumn start, he didn't have to worry about waking up late or dressing himself up in messy clothes. He already stated his intent on joining the military to his mother, going so far as to arguing with her about not giving a damn about his family's history, since what really mattered the most was his duty to his species and the Union. Thankfully, in the end, his mother relented and gave her blessing, as well as an advice to keep his distance from politics.

Just recently, he spent some precious time with his friend Lyra, lying down in a park surrounded by nothing but green grass and sheltering trees. No one was around, perfect for the two young couple to share their ideas.

"You're coming along right, babe? I'll buy you a drink if the others want to have some" Raizex rubbed his tail on his girlfriend's.

"What? Oh, of course not. I'm still waiting for my Post-Graduation Drill, you know."

"We can ditch it and come back later. I did it a month after the graduation day."

"Haha, I knew you did. Always the outgoing, rebellious youngster, aren't you? Not to mention ditching classes multiple times," Lyra teased with a huge grin. She sent a playful fist toward her friend's face, which Raizex evaded, his face turned funny as if pretending to be a martial artist.

"Ooooh, my babe hurt me, I'm so sad!"

"Heh, don't be like that. You wanted to enlist to the Grand Fleet, right? Do me a favor and be a tough boy, not the class clown you used to be."

"I can pretend to be tough, as long as my instructor turns his face on me."

The ever-defiant male he was, Raizex kept no secret when he told his classmates about his future. He was barely surprised when others nodded in agreement; the other males in particular looked to the same future as he did, and some did immediately accepted recruitment offers after the Post-Graduation Drill event. The Fleet expected more to jump at the chance to fill in their shortages, but they could work with what they had.

"If he slaps your face or calls you a weakling, what will you do?"

"I'll wait until he's not looking at me and then I jump on his back, and begin yelling like those humans do in the film archives. What do the scholars called it? Rodeo or something similar to it? Yeah, I'd certainly do it in a heartbeat!" the young lizard stuck out a tongue as he imagined the scene in his mind.

Lyra gave him a soft affectionate purr, enjoying the companion of the male Indoraptor.

"Okay, let's... put that idea away until you know what kind of job you really wanted to work in."

"Well, uh, I did say that I want to work outside of Earth."

Rolling her gleaming eyes in exasperation, Lyra added "Yeah, I get that. But the point is; where do you want the Fleet to put you in? Do you want them to train you in real combat situation, shooting and slashing enemies left and right? Would you rather be the combat analyst, working real time in front of those big fancy computers? Or would you enjoy being on the ground like in my case?"

"What is YOUR case? Farming? Building houses?" asked Raizex, tapping his hand claws on the grass.

"A computer programmer... I mean, not really a programmer, but more like someone who oversees the colony's internet connection and system analysis, making sure that we can still receive data and launch messages without delay. Nobody wants to be cut off from the internet."

"And where this colony would be?"

"Lemuria, of course. The shining beacon of our future!" the female Indoraptor dramatized that last bit of her sentence with pride.

Raizex sneered, "So you'll be a colony's Overseer, huh? And in the most popular colony to boot! You get to poke around everyone's privacy?" he asked vaguely, wondering if his girlfriend would someday become a control-freak. To his amusement, she shook her head and smiled gently.

"Hah, you wish. Being an actual Overseer requires you to dabble in the Union's politics, and I never really trust politics."

"You and me both, babe!"

"Exactly!"

Both rolled on the ground while hugging each other. After nuzzling each other's snouts, Lyra said goodbye to her boyfriend and went back home. Raizex sat on the ground watching birds and pterosaurs flew past in the sky, contemplating on his relationship which had been blooming for years since middle school. Sure, other females had been pretty suggestive when talking to him, even one of them once suggested Raizex to get married to her as soon as they graduated, but Lyra held a special spot inside him. And now, with the two of them willing to have occupations outside of their home planet, Raizex didn't need to feel alone.

 **-x-x-x-x-x-**

 _Indoraptor Year 378, December, colony world Cognita..._

The small office building that was originally a reassembled colony ship had been renovated into a proper planetary administration office. Although its construction was celebrated by the excited colonists, Overseer Mesana was anxious; she and her workmen suffered from shortage of efficient labor force. Two messages were e-mailed straight to the Admiralty Board, and weeks later there was no indication of more employees being sent to the rapidly-growing Cognita.

The official report she received instead merely spoke of the Board's need to divert some manpower to ensure an efficient flow of resources between the fledgling colonies. In the meantime, Cognita was told to work on whatever resources and manpower it had; the Chiefs and the Board promised to lend in their help if the opportunity aroused.

It was an unavoidable obligation, they said. A meaningless piece of data, she said.

What good is a decorative administration office if it wasn't staffed adequately?

As Mesana dolefully walked through the empty halls of the office, she noticed how the work tables, the computers, heck, even the cafeteria lacked the busyness of a typical office. Only a handful of janitors could be seen wandering about the halls, cleaning up any clutter left behind from the renovation work. At this point, she practically had no job and was at risk of letting the colony fell into maladministration.

The Overseer peered out of a window in a hallway. Outside of it, the overjoyed colonists were celebrating with festivals, traditional beverages, and grilling what looked like a large wild animal that is native from the colony planet. They must've hunted it down themselves, she thought.

The outside and inside atmospheres were so contradicting.

The disappointed Overseer scornfully contemplated the colonists' behavior as she observed the janitors leaving after ramping up their duty. They definitely wouldn't be that cheerful should the Grand Fleet station some of their best operatives on Cognita. The Admirals would, at best, allowed them some time to celebrate before getting back to work, or at worse, had everyone working day and night until everything was deemed 'acceptable' by them.

A final check in one of the hindmost rooms revealed that, yes, the office was collecting dust from the absence of employees. Nobody would be working there as long as Mesana had no staffs.

Ah, to hell with it. If Cognita's settlers insisted on going festive for the day, so be it. She might as well head back to her cabin and rest for the time being.

The Overseer briskly walked back to where she abandoned her mantle. Taking her torso plates away and left them cluttered on her table, she picked up her mantle and hurriedly left her office room, remembering to lock the room's door moments after nearly reaching the building's main doors.

Returning back to the exit, Mesana cursed herself for having to went through a detour. She gave the building one last glance before heading home. The sky was darkening; if the Chiefs declared curfew hours on the colony too, then she ought to return soon. No way was she letting soldiers march her all the way back to home.

Mesana did her night roster in a tight fashion; showering right after removing her clothes ( _remember to not waste too much water_ ), making a simple microwave dinner ( _veggies with meat cut into tiny cubic shapes_ ), store all of her work utensils in the proper cabinets ( _Be sure to differentiate between the magenta one and the lime green one_ ), and lastly check her eraphone for any urgent messages before sleeping right away. She could use some free time to polish her claws and tail, however...

No info whatsoever, great. Either her request was really stacked into the 'trivial' mailbox by the Admiralty Board or there was some sort of connection blackout that she didn't aware of. Nevertheless, the tired Overseer saw no use to stay awoke expecting assistance that'd never come...

The time in the evening was nearly equivalent to 11 p.m. on Earth when her eraphone vibrated beneath her pillow. Jolting awake as if hearing a thunder out of nowhere, Mesana fumbled in the darkened cabin as she threw her pillows everywhere, trying to find the device before it stopped vibrating. It could be very serious, she assumed, or it could possibly be a prank call sent to incite her irritation. To be fair, it's more like the female Indoraptor angrily trashed her room for being woken up late at night. Anyone caught up in her situation would do the same.

It seemed that fate finally relented and gave a respite to the furious Indoraptor, as she got a hold of her eraphone right when it let out one last vibration. Turning it on, she spoke clearly into the speaker.

"Union Overseer Mesana Iteran here."

"Lady Iteran?! Good, good. This is Atrine Walmez, you know, the farming professor accompanied by two bumbling incompetent acolytes."

"Oh, you," Mesana breathed out in frustration. Surely the male from Hagalaz Institute couldn't find a more inappropriate time to make a call? "Listen, it's already night time here and I have no more business with the rest of the colony, not as long as the Prime Chief postpones anymore support I demanded from him." She was more than willing to cut the phone call if only Atrine Walmez didn't get right into the topic of their talk.

"Exactly what I wanted to talk about. Just minutes ago, I got an official message directly from the Chiefs!"

"No kidding? They actually responded?!" this got her attention.

"No kidding! Apparently, they must've mistaken me as a secretary of yours, but they are indeed ready to send in whoever you need to run the administration office! I'll forward you the message now. In the meantime, file a list of vacant positions and mail it straight to the Prime Chief."

"He wants it right now?!" Mesana practically jumped out of her bed at the thought of having to type down a list of potential applicants so late at night. Granted, she wasn't thrilled with it, but direct orders and requests from the leader of their Union were to be fulfilled straightaway.

"No, not now, lady. He knows it is night time here on Cognita. More or less you'll have to prepare it at sunrise. This planet's sunrise, no doubt."

"Consider it done. Thank you, Mr. Walmez, even though you nearly gave me a heart attack minutes ago..."

As she terminated the call, the female examined the clock in her eraphone, determining that she had between 9 to 12 hours left until sunrise / deadline. That left her with some 4 hours' worth of sleep, and maybe 6 hours or so to compile a document for the Prime Chief.

Unwilling to stand around doing nothing any longer, Mesana went about to fix all that pillows she discarded and head back to sleep, her eraphone was set to wake her up in four hours before being hidden underneath her favorite pillow.

 **-x-x-x-x-x-**

 _Indoraptor Year 379, January, Washington's Nova Prospect Port..._

"I'm sorry. I wanted to say so much thing to you..."

"I know, I'm sorry too... but time's short, we have to get you there first."

"Can't we postpone it a bit? I'd rather watch you go first then..."

"Raizex Valzack, listen to me! All of the recruits were already gathering there. You must NOT be late!"

"But there might not be a second chance!"

"This isn't the end. We can still see each other... right?"

The stressful day that Raizex dreaded had arrived. He never thought that he would finally be there; being drafted into full-time service and ready to put his skills to good use. He was so caught up in his own problem that he failed to notice that Lyra was leaving too. She'd be departing to Lemuria, she said. Amena, his mother, was certainly too happy and melodramatic at the same time to realize what was happening between them. The female Indoraptor had to yell it at her boyfriend when the latter was too busy packing up his casual clothes, new torso plates, plus his new uniform.

The uniform he got after completing the recruitment test to serve with the Grand Fleet.

Heavens, how time flew, she mused. One moment, she and Raizex's mother saw him returning home after he passed one week of testing at the mercy of highly objective captains of the Fleet. She herself just completed her job interview to work in Lemuria, too. A week later, both of them were granted the authorization to go to wherever the Union needed them; the Fleet's tactical information center for Raizex, and internet networking in Lemuria's colony for Lyra.

She felt the two of them weren't sincere enough with how they said goodbye. No joking, since both had to say lengthy farewells to their families and friends, not to mention the chaos that was denoted by Amena as 'paperwork arrangements'. To put it mildly, Lyra won't be calling Earth her home anytime soon; she'd be staying in the colony on Lemuria for quite possibly the rest of her life, even having an official ID identifying her as the colony's permanent resident. Raizex, on the other hand, would go everywhere he's ordered to, at the expense of not having residential rights unless he had a certified approval to remain at a specific place for a specific amount of time.

"Look out there, babe! The ships aren't even here yet! There's still time!" The distressed young Indoraptor tried to convince his friend to let her embark from Earth first.

"I don't care! Your mom and I can't afford to have you come late on your first day. Besides, who knows what kind of person in charge you're going to serve..."

"What about you then?"

"On Lemuria, you mean? Not sure about that myself. I've heard that I'd be accompanied by some genius named Atrine, but who knows. Overseer Langdon might be able to tell more later."

Raizex made a gesture as if wanting to kiss her, only for Lyra to stop him as she pointed her finger to the sky, "There, you see it?! The shuttles are here! I'll go find your mom, tell her to see you set off today." She was correct; a dozen metallic grey shuttles landed smoothly on the port, their doors slid open as soon as the shuttles touched the ground, ready to take fresh graduates to Adar Flam, the spaceport orbiting Earth.

Before anything else could be done, Raizex's right hand caught Lyra in a surprising turn of events; he gave her a long kiss of goodbye.

He actually kissed her, Lyra excitedly thought!

Just when Lyra wanted to respond her boyfriend's kiss with a warm hug, Raizex quickly backed away, his clawed hands carrying his black leather backpack.

"I'll be alright, sweetheart." he said.

"Look, you're right. I've got to go now and I can't say a long goodbye for you once you leave Earth. But take mom to the third floor; you'll both get a good view of the sky and the shuttles."

The dumbstruck Lyra could only stare as he scuttled to join his future comrades, hesitating to enter his shuttle to give one last look at her. Mentally slapping herself for standing still, Lyra ran back into the port's terminal to find Raizex's mother and get her to see him off from the topmost floor of the terminal.

Suffice to say that by the time the recruits departed from the planet, Amena broke down into tears of joy as she watched her son leaving to perform his future tasks at the spaceport. Both female Indoraptors stared at the sky for quite some time until they were ready to head back home.

On their way back, they found many other parents engaging in talks about their children, expectantly wishing for them to have a chance to serve under the Union's most distinguished officers.

"Are you hungry, sweetheart? I could make you something special, if you want."

"That'd be great, ma'am. I do have two days left before I leave for Lemuria."

"Then I probably will drag your parents along to see you off."

A smile formed on Lyra's face as she accepted Amena's offer. Her parents could perhaps find companion in Raizex's kind but hardworking mother.


	4. Chapter 4

**The Things That People Don't Want You to Know**

 _Indoraptor Year 379, April, Space Port Adar Flam orbiting the homeworld, Sol System..._

Union Comms Officer Altaroth Umi was busy today. Unlike her usual duty roster, which sometimes involved relaying messages from one sector to another, or monitoring information traffic to and from the spaceport, Umi and her partners gained the authorization to pass on messages between spaceports as of now. That was correct; last month, at the very least, two other spaceports had completed their construction, each of them orbited Cognita and Lemuria. This allowed the Union's Grand Fleet to build more ships and expand their influence. The catch? Umi gained a lot more new responsibilities including the obligation to supervise the coming and going of ships. Despite the apparent lack of large, organized crimes between planets, nobody in power were willing to cut corners with security.

And so, there she was, keeping eyes and earholes open as she observed three communication channels for anything out of ordinary.

"Aha, there you are! I thought you went down to mess hall!"

Well, thankfully Umi's coworkers suffered through the same stridency as her to truly develop a sense of companionship. Another female Indoraptor entered the Comms Sector's office, carrying with her two cups of dark-looking beverages.

"Believe me Yorda, in any other normal day I'd be staying in the refectory five hours longer than anybody else."

"You're just too full of activity. Here, take a sip."

"What is this? Chocolate?"

"No. The humans used to call it 'coffee' but I'm not sure which."

"Which what?"

"The Archives said humans once loved the sweet and bitter taste of the thing, and it's supposedly contains caffeine, and can be mixed with chocolate and milk. Not sure where the hell did the humans got their milk, though. The Archives talked about many types of coffee, and if I'm right we have 'Robusta' coffee in our hands. Nowadays we treat this coffee like any other normal drinks but... I thought I read some documents from the Archives that summarized this drink in one long sentence."

"Oh yeah? Spill it while no one's hearing, Yorda. Come on!"

"Right, what did it say? Maybe somewhere along the line ' _coffee beans' aromatic scent and its various uses in the beverage industry caused multiple armed conflicts between landowners, coffee farmers, and industrial capitalists that many corporations were willing to immediately trademarked certain coffee drink recipes in order to prevent their opponents from gaining public attention_ ', I think."

Umi laughed, nearly spilling her drink to her chest plate. Upon encouragement from Yorda, she tasted the black steaming beverage. True to her partner's words, the coffee did tasted bitter but somewhere under it was an underlying flavor of sweetness.

Yorda smiled widely, "Yeah, bet you'll be asking for more, huh? Don't get too addicted to it, dear. Having too much caffeine is bad for your bloodstream."

Gulping down half of the glass' content, Umi placed it on a table far away from the room's electronic devices before returning to relax and engage her coworker in another topic. Yorda hadn't drunk hers yet, strangely.

"Alright, now I've got a question for you, Umi; have you been monitoring those cadets?"

"Why do you ask?"

"I've heard one of them is named Valzack."

"Oh damn. Male or female?"

"Male."

"Related to Laurine Nero Valzack? Or any of his descendants?"

"I don't know. The higher ups don't openly share full details about the latest recruits on public forums. Not surprising though, because I know how Intel on that division is tightly distributed."

Realizing that this conversation might took a long time, Umi excused herself to perform a quick scan on her network system. So far, there hadn't anything that required her full attention, nor had there been a ship or anything detected on the spaceport's radars, either from visual scanning or warp energy detection. Likewise, Yorda peeked briefly outside the security door to ensure no stragglers were listening in. Security cameras were also set on standby mode just in case somebody monitored their talks.

Satisfied, the Comms Officer scurried back to her friend, whose silted eyes gleamed with a hint of intrigue.

"Okay, spill me the beans, or whatever that human axiom was."

"You don't say the name Valzack without first being reminded of that scandalous plot from... I forget, seventy to eighty years ago."

"Which one was it?" Umi leaned closer to listen, her paws intertwined against one another, "Is it related to that second civil war in Europe, or that one municipal dispute in Asia about scientific expansions being allegedly unobstructed by social rights unless the Prime Chief wrote a sanctioned constituent?"

"No, dearest. What I'm talking about is the human-cloning scandal. The reason why you, and many other Indoraptors, very rarely know about it, is because the whole scheme was recorded and stored away in the deepest reaches of the Human Archives, accessible only to those owning the highest level of clearance. Long story short, everybody knows that our species was artificially created, which means we didn't originally existed on our homeworld."

"Okay?" Umi nodded keenly.

"What everybody DOESN'T know is that we were meant to be something more than a simulated life. We are BIOWEAPONS, Umi, designed with the main goal of terminating humans wherever they're found! We were actually aliens to our own planet. Did you realize how long did it take for man to evolve into the so-called 21st century civilization? And did you realize the amount of time we Indoraptors needed to reach the same level of civilization as they did? Mankind had 12,000 years of evolution to get to where they were before they disappeared, and ours? Three and a half centuries before we stepped even further than them. Yeah, I know what you're thinking; that we were lucky to have Archives full of knowledge getting passed down to our earlier generations. But that's the point; we are machines of war, meant to be smarter and more intelligent than man! As our teachers and scientists acknowledged now, war is competition, and competition is how nature separates the strong and the weak. Man claimed themselves as the 'masters of war', but when their creations revolted against them, revealing to them what evolution really is, they were powerless to turn the tide back in their favor."

"Isn't that why we were highly competitive, and yet so united in our everyday lives?"

"Yeah, but it didn't come from natural selection. It was an instinct programmed into our elders! All individuals descending from them just happen to share the same mindset among each other, explaining the mysteriously low number of armed conflicts in our history. It's the drive to stay strong and competitive that brought our forefathers together, the need to always protect one another. Regarding those two infamous civil wars, short-lived yet vicious and destructive, all our historians would say is that our people began to grow some kind of schism in cultural beliefs and political views. But it got me thinking; what if the civil wars were orchestrated because one faction discovered something that was deemed radical by their opponents?"

Now that Yorda mentioned it, her contriving arguments made Umi think. When the Union Cheifs claimed to have unveiled a dark plot about bringing the extinct mankind back into life, the masses were assured that it was just an unrealized machinations of a mad scientist, and was quickly swept under the rug. All participating admirals and other government personnel, according to conspiracy theorizers, were given two choices; be bribed into silence forever or executed to prevent social disruption.

Many begrudgingly accepted the bribe, it seemed. Those who rejected, Umi finally put two and two together, eventually kick-started the second war, based on the suspected scheme to breed tank-grown humans as slaves or expendable foot soldiers. Just like how human scientists created the chimeric lizards by combining the DNAs of a dozen animals, both extant and extinct, there was a possibility of cloning man by the use of hybridization, although the resulting lifeform could perhaps not human-like. Given enough time, someone would be bound to petition for humanity's rights as a living organism.

Seeing that Indoraptors overthrown humanity as Earth's ruling creatures, it might be the cause why the scandal was gossiped in hushed tone. No Indoraptor say whatever thing about humans or their culture without an air of disdain, no matter how small.

"You know the rest, don't you?"

"Yeah, in fact I just thought about it. It's a rather complicated scandal."

"Definitely. By the way, have you... damn it, I'm supposed to be down in the Admin Sector in five minutes! I'll be late!"

"Really?!"

Checking the digital clock in her computer screen, Umi realized Yorda was right. Quarter an hour had passed as they talked. Moreover, Umi's coffee remained half full, and if anyone outside her sector found out, she'd be in trouble.

Both took their time emptying their now-cold beverages, and when they finally did, Yorda brought the glasses along with a hasty goodbye, scurrying past the main door and forgot to close it.

Shaking her head at her partner's forgetfulness, Umi quickly turned the office's security cameras back to their normal setting while examining her mailbox. Aside from a memorandum letting her know to file a weekly duty report, nothing dangerous or out of commonplace was detected at all. With it, the Comms Officer let out a sigh in relief. She won't be in trouble for now.

That is, until she remembered the security door was still open.

 **-x-x-x-x-x-**

 _Indoraptor Year 379, April, Space Port Adar Flam orbiting the homeworld, Sol System..._

Admiral Kalini Ender sat in his office alone, studying the latest reports from Lemuria, or to be precise the moon orbiting the colony world.

The colony's supervising Overseer, Qorina Arienne, sent back some... disturbing accounts related to extraterrestrial civilization, claiming that ruins of an unknown civilization had been exposed on the cold barren moon. Based on her xenoarcheologists' findings, the ruins dated as far back as 650,000 years ago, and consisted primarily of mining networks, a science facility, and small habitation centers on the moon's plateaus. Overseer Arienne supplied additional notes in her reports, citing how the now-lifeless moon orbiting Lemuria was presumed to be a garden world a long time ago, an arid grassland world according to her. It became devoid of life due to some kind of meteorite impacts from space... but the photographs of said craters convinced Admiral Ender of a probable orbital bombardment.

So far there had been two disagreeing opinions. One group voiced their interest in revealing the discovery to the public as soon as possible in order to gain momentum, a chance to further unite their species they said. The opposition announced their interest in cracking the secrets of the ruins first, wanting to exhume all of its wealth of knowledge before lastly telling the public of what they've found.

"By sharing this discovery with the best and brightest of our Union, we shall be able to organize ourselves against larger threats which lurk in the void, once everyone is aware that alien civilizations do exist," the first group said.

"We must carefully research this phenomenon before we do anything else, lest our citizens suddenly collapse into cult-like anarchy and splitting into political factions amongst the Union upon the revelation of this Intel," the second group said.

Admiral Ender sighed. In spite of his decision to stay abstain, deep down he too was afraid of the implications. For quite some time in their history, the Indoraptors remained skeptical toward the idea of alien societies thriving beyond their world. That being said, life-sustaining planets were to be considered empty of sentient cultures and ripe for colonization, wherever they are. Every star in the Milky Way galaxy, consequently, was deemed to be theirs to claim.

Now they found alien ruins on a barren rock. Proof of intelligent life beyond their own world.

Imagine what could happen if said ruins were on a garden planet.

Even worse, imagine if said ruins turned out to be a functioning society.

This could lead into an all-out war.

"What we have in our hands today is one of the greatest scientific discoveries ever! The Union will thank you if we openly extend invitation to all proficient academics to assist the research on the alien ruins, and spread the knowledge we retrieved for the good of us all. Think about the potential!" the admiral could vividly recall the enthusiasm in the first group's spokesperson.

"Which is exactly what we feared from it. The citizens will accuse us of hiding it since long ago, they won't believe it if we say we unearthed the ruins mere weeks ago. Openly proclaiming it will bring all manners of societal disorder, and you know what will happen if our people created divisions that may weaken the Union." the opposing group's assertive voice held more weight in it, the admiral thought.

So far, no agreement was reached yet.

As of the following week, the homeworld's Chiefs were convening in Washington, America, to determine the best course of action. One of the most vocal points they had been discussing was the need to prepare a form of universal language translator. That is, of course, if the Union desired a peaceful and diplomatic coexistence with whatever species they meet along the way. If aggressive and xenophobic approach to first-contact scenarios were suggested instead... then a translator wouldn't do much, if at all.

Overseer Arienne didn't voice her opinion yet. It was justified, as her job was to manage the colony's growth, not to dabble in politics. Overseers on the other three colonies were given statement on this matter, albeit it was mailed in yellow color marking to prevent low-clearance personnel to open the mails.

Growling in displeasure, Ender stuffed the papers on a folder and placed it inside his desk. All similar information in his work computer was compressed and filed under the label 'ancillary significance'. He couldn't afford to waste his time wading in such matters.

He couldn't afford being disturbed by the Chiefs' upheaval.

With that problem erased from his mind, the admiral continued to the next task; studying how the recruits behaved so far.

One month of rigid training, plus two months of actual field work appeared to have stimulated certain responses to challenges in different individuals. Many were reassigned to new sectors different than the ones they started in, some by requesting it themselves, others by the recommendation of their commanding officers. Those who remained in the same sectors over the months seemed to perform well. Ship maintaining, information analysis, training with guns and melee weapons, every recruits trained to hone their skills in whichever duty they accomplished.

One paper in particular stood out.

Pulling it out, Ender judiciously read the information it had to offer, not breaking his silence. Rather than pleased, he experienced a pang of remorse as he left the paper where it was.

Standing up, the old Indoraptor walked slowly to his small trophy cabinet, observing a picture in silver frame that he stored in the middle. It was a picture taken after he completed his mission against the pro-human cloning terrorists. In it, he stood proud and brave, surrounded by compatriots who survived the ordeal... and in the center, wrapping his arm over Ender's shoulder, was a male Indoraptor with icy-blue stripe and earthly brown eyes, his armor stained with dirt and dust. Years had passed, and yet the old admiral still missed that one male very much.

"Good Heavens, Laurent Valzack. It's been a long time since we were best friends, and now I have your son under my wings. I'm not sure if I can keep him from following your footsteps. Hell, I don't know if your son Raizex would end up like your controversial father, Laurine, or not."

A moment later he added, "And Heavens forgive me if the boy does something stupid."

He spent some time watching the photograph until he found solace in himself, and a will to keep working on his paperwork.


	5. Chapter 5

**Murmurs among the Strangers**

 _Imperium Year 2175 (Indoraptor Year 379), June 5th, planet Earth(?)..._

"Good morning, sir."

"At ease, commander."

The two humans in uniform were standing inside a protected room, inaccessible to virtually everyone but them. The male human general shifted his attention from the lady commander on his side to the datapad in her possession, carrying the top-secret report regarding the existence of another spacefaring empire.

For centuries, the human race thought itself as the sole sapient lifeform throughout the galaxy, believing that space was empty of life to begin with. Explorations upon explorations were conducted in search of life in the cosmos, and yet all they found were ruins of those who came before, and habitable planets populated by mere plants and animals. Millions upon millions of credits poured into all manners of research; the men and women of the Imperium of Terra required the best of information and technology if they were to triumph over the 'Final Frontier', and the best they would take.

For a long, long time, mankind met no other sapient life in space, only decaying ruins which spoke of great cataclysms in the past. Investigations achieved on the sites yielded blueprints for humanity to study and develop their technology from. Interstellar warp drives, kinetic weaponry, spaceships with artificial gravity, up until crude forms of genetic engineering. And so, the Imperium of Terra was born, both to safeguard humanity from perils of the cosmos and to expand their materialist interests. Space is empty, most people said, there's nothing to be afraid of.

That belief was shattered when their best scientists identified the presence of another interstellar empire through their long-range satellites. The top brass hadn't released their findings to the public, wanting to understand this spectacle first and took essential precautions unless the discovery was judged non-life threatening.

"I've heard plenty of news so far, but no evidence until now. Is this correct?"

"Yes, sir." the commander nodded firmly.

"Have they been verified?"

A second nod from the commander confirmed the general's suspicions; the existence of a rival civilization could possibly be a threat to the Imperium's integrity, and the survival of the human race. Further examination on the reports failed to identify the exact number of neither the aliens' fleet power and size nor the their colonized planets, but they did isolate the large number of communication between the members of the enigmatic species; speculated to be the establishment of planetary governments in each colony worlds.

These worlds, the researchers noted, were of divergent biomes, many of which were said to be unsuitable for humans without first constructing special habitation centers and frontier clinics.

"One more thing to clarify, sir."

"Explain."

"Our scientists, especially those among the top brass, claimed under vague suggestion that this alien empire... originated from a parallel Earth, most likely a misidentification." the commaner kept her voice monotone, not wishing to be called outlandish.

"One does not make outrageous statements like that. Parallel Earth?" the general narrowed his green eyes at the mention of it.

"Your skepticism is one of many, general. The majority of the Imperium disagreed with the findings, yet they demanded more thorough investigations to determine if these aliens... these Indoraptors are of any hazard to us. If they are, we ought to plan preemptive strikes at their territories in case they become a danger. Otherwise, let them prowl behind their border."

The general's blank facial expression was a complete mystery. Even behind the facade of seriousness, the commander could see two contradictory thoughts inside his mind; one desired to preserve humanity's strengths against a bigger threat than the Indoraptors ( _ignore them xenos as long as they play nice_ ), while the other insisted on wiping out potential menace before they grow into real perils ( _we destroy them or they destroy us_ ). The commander dared not to break the silence, lest she rubbed her superior in the wrong way.

Explicitly, the Imperium's fleet strength consisted of twelve cruiser-class ships, nineteen destroyer-class ships, and dozens of fighter-class ships (small, nimble, and designed to confuse enemy ships through the use of small, rapid-firing weapons). It was not satisfactory however, what with their three fledgling colonies still lacking sufficient resources before they could contribute anything of use, including soldiers and warships, to the Imperium.

In the end, something must be done.

"Increase the number of ships within the fleets," the general expressed his orders, "send word to the other admirals and generals, tell them to bring in more manpower, stockpile any and all strategic resources together with the betharian stones, tell them to do whatever it takes to keep us on the top. Don't let our weaknesses be spotted by the aliens."

"Understood, sir."

"And for the record, don't let your personal views cloud your judgment. I care not if there are parallel Earths out there, and I don't want to hear illogical nonsense about parallel humans, too. The aliens, whoever they are, will either be our enemies or passive rivals. Are we clear? Tell our researchers that, or capital punishment will be on their way."

"Affirmative, sir."

Watching the commander left him in the room alone, the general silently contemplated his verdict. Damn it all, he thought, he and the rest of the Imperium held the fate of mankind in their hands, and now fate decided to throw a completely unknown variable in their direction, a variable so utterly wild and unfamiliar that people would go mad from thinking too much about it.

The general could only hope that, whatever the outcome of the imminent first-contact situation, the Imperium and humanity as a whole could be benefitted from it.

 **-x-x-x-x-x-**

 _Agnaktor Year 2217 (Indoraptor Year 379), June 6th, planet Agnius..._

"There is no mistake in this?"

"None, Executive Zyr, we have checked and rechecked it countless times."

The two vermillion-colored reptiles were chattering quickly in Vasilis, the official language of the Agnaktor Republic. Just ten days ago, the scientific community of _Crimson Blaze_ had announced their discovery of an intelligent civilization who mastered space colonization. Some sort of reptile-like aliens, they said, settling on planets with wide arrays of biomes.

"Have we determined their name and type of government?"

"We haven't pinpointed their species name yet, but preliminary observations indicated a kind of military republic type of government. We thought of this as impossibility, but who knows? These are aliens after all; they might not hold the same principles as we do."

"Very well. Is there any new opinion posted on our public forum?"

"None as of today, Executive. The citizens both on Agnius and the two space stations in our star system remained transfixed on the two accepted notions."

The disgruntled leader permitted her aide to abandon the premise. The female Agnaktor then cleaned her work table of any paperwork, glancing once in a while to her communication device as if waiting for news.

Of course, due to the provocative nature of the declaration, the entire population of the Republic was dragged into a series of long debates. Firstly, the debates were to disprove such findings by invoking the Jarsemi Mystery, an accepted description to explain the lack of extraterrestrial civilization despite the galaxy having existed for billions of years, to explain why the universe was quiet. Came nine days later, and the spokesperson of the _Crimson Blaze_ opened a second public debate, where they presented a voice recording captured by their space satellites, a recording of what they called the aliens' language. It was, at first, disjointed as if the speakers gave long pauses between sentences, but in-depth examinations revealed that their speech was somewhat full of flavors, as in possessing a large number of weird-sounding phrases.

The subsequent debates meant to contradict the Jarsemi Mystery slowly transformed into arguments on the Republic's ethics and code of conducts in the future. Would they be welcoming the aliens in open hands? Would the Republics be friendly, cordial, or antagonistic in their diplomacy? What of the Agnaktors' future in the face of galactic cooperation?

The answer was, to put it mildly, uncertain.

Executive Zyr had to listen to the continental Governors of the Republic voicing their attitudes in an ever-escalating dispute. So far none were willing to bond their views together.

"Since we are not well-equipped for a possible interstellar war, I therefore suggest that we settle for a peaceful, diplomatic contact with the lizard aliens. Who knows? Maybe one day our government and theirs may become allies," said several Governors with pacifist inclination.

"True, but we must also increase our own fleet power and the citizens' job-related skills. Any sane mind would tell you that our Republic can't afford to rely on someone else's military prowess to safeguard our people, and we can't have the aliens to capitalize on our fluctuating economy. We have to be independent and strong, not weak and submissive!" said another group of Governors with cynical alignment.

"This party believes that, if the conditions are perfect, we can bring the aliens into our servitude. Instead of relying on their military might, we turn them into our guardians by the use of certain governmental influences, and with promises of greater freedom and direct access to some of our more advanced technology, the aliens could be lured and used as our right-hand people."

That last idea was shot down by Executive Zyr and all who resented the idea of political meddling among aliens like her.

Truth be told, the species mainly voted for the first option, and Zyr appeared to indirectly approved it as well, and for good reason. The Agnaktors are both thrifty and intellectual, fancying themselves as a combination of credible traders and natural prodigy in science and engineering, so obviously they would go for the least confrontational path. Being jungle dwellers only seemed to intensify that one problem of their society; the Agnaktors are physically fragile, inappropriate for direct warfare with potential opponents, even though they don't get sick easily.

With all that political turmoil, and an incoming time where everything they've grown accustomed to be challenged, Zyr gathered willpower in her mind to stay optimistic for a favorable and nonviolent interaction when the inevitable comes.

 **-x-x-x-x-x-**

 _Sylvon Year 2191 (Indoraptor Year 379), June 7th, planet Akantorin..._

Two tall figures stood in a darkened office. One male and one female, their faces were kept stoic and their facial tentacles unmoving. They were speaking in Tamadol, the oldest official language of their species.

The male, Councilor Astrax, offered an oval datapad for the female to study, who was seated on an expensive leather chair.

"Interesting. Very interesting."

The mutterings of the spymistress convinced Councilor Astrax of forthcoming business opportunity presented by the discovery, one that also possessed a risk of empire-wide jeopardy. The councilor held his tongue, letting the female to absorb all information provided in the datapad.

Ever since two decades ago, the Sylvons' Akantorin Council worked tirelessly to search for signs of intelligent space aliens. During that time, they only discovered two; the first one was the aquatic reptile Agnaktor and their democratic government system dubbed the 'Republic', while the second one was the primate-like Human, publicizing a militaristic empire which reeks of xenophobic archetype. The former could be taken care of effortlessly through economic supremacy. The latter could be dealt with by luring them into proxy warfare and devious negotiations.

The Akantorin Council already outlined its long-term plans to dominate both Agnaktors and Humans.

The Council did not expect to detect a third party so quickly after investigating the Imperium of Terra.

"Let us recall what we already know about the... Indoraptor," the councilor began awkwardly." To begin with, we know that they are carnivorous in nature, predators, perhaps even the apex hunters in their planet of origin. They are bipedal in their normal stance, but capable of running on all fours when the situation forced them to. Our spies noted that the Indoraptors are able to thrive in many biomes, evidenced by their colonies which consisted of a savanna planet, a tropical planet, a tundra planet, and an oceanic planet with archipelagos. Sadly, we haven't found their technological level yet. But seeing them inhabiting different environments and grow fast in short time, it's safe to assume that they are more dangerous than the chauvinistic Imperium."

"Next, let's examine how their Union operates," The spymistress continued, "Their government is equivalent to what we can define as 'military democracy'. This Grand Fleet and its Board of Admirals control nearly every aspect of civilian life save education, agriculture and individual beliefs, and demands a kind of paramilitary training for their students after graduating from the highest level of education. From then on, the... Prime Chief of the Union and its assistants allow said students to choose whether they want to jump straight at industrial sectors, or to take courses to increase their skills, or to follow enlistment at the behest of the Board of Admirals. But... unlike the two other species, this one is... how do I put it? Egalitarian? Communal? Regardless of the terminology, armed conflicts were inexplicably rare for the Indoraptors, as if they hold social harmony and integrity in the highest honor. Their main loyalty is to the Union and its Prime Chief, but they're permitted to express their art and culture as long as they remain polite and gracious to everyone."

"To me, it looked like such positive values are encoded, programmed, into their system of belief." Councilor Astrax said.

"Are you proposing the likelihood of these lizards being artificially created rather than a natural product of evolution?"

"Even if I wanted to say yes, no progress has been made to isolate the probability." the spymistress and her companion traded uneasy glances every now and then. The reports were long and detailed, but no matter how many times the spymistress searched, no outstanding discovery was included. Nothing that could give her an advantage over the new aliens. Could she be left out of the loop? Or her best agents simply didn't find a chance to hand over what they have studied? In which case, she needed to expand more influence in getting more Council members to her sway. More allies meant more information and assets coming in her favor.

"I could commission the third and fourth battle groups to scout their borders, if you wish."

"Not now, Councilor. We'll need to get in the aliens' good side in the early years of first-contact." the spymistress warned. Astrax's facial tentacles flared in disbelief.

"And what will you desire to happen?"

"For the Union and the Imperium to bash heads against each other, removing one rival by using the other as a means to an end. We'll side with whoever's the strongest, and lure the Agnaktors in with promises of safety and full citizenship inside our borders."

"My money's on the Indoraptors. They're physically tough, resilient, and with their harmonious and chivalrous ideology, they'd be happy to mow down the Human Imperium of Terra."

The spymistress waved her lanky hand in dismissal, "For the record, I'll advise you to not bet too early, in the event that your expectation hit you back. Let's call it a day for now. Try giving the other Councilors some guidance on a safe approach to first-contacts scenarios. I'll try to pull in some favors from our old friends. If all goes well, we should be able to see through the coming uproar." she assured the male Sylvon, turning off the datapad as he took it back. A few steps from the exit door, the councilor looked back at the female, now standing to look outside the room's veiled windows.

"Can I trust you and your organization to protect the people's wellbeing?"

"Certainly, sir. Miralis is dedicated to safeguarding the Sylvons and their interests."


	6. Chapter 6

**Say Hi to Your New Neighbors**

 _Indoraptor Year 380, February 11th, onboard the Union Military Vessel (UMV) Coelacanth..._

"Comms Officer, have you translated the xeno's language? Be sure to avoid mistakes in grammar, phonetics, and intonation. I want to be sure that these aliens are indeed docile."

"Yes, admiral."

"Good. Tell the aliens to come where we wanted them to. Once they arrive, open communication channel. I'll handle the welcoming part."

"Understood, sir. Shall I record the whole conversation?"

"Yes. The Prime Chief will want to hear it firsthand."

Admiral Ender held his breath. Approximately twenty four hours ago, the Union was contacted by an alien society, much to the Union citizen's confusion and worries. For unknown reasons, said unidentified aliens also included a crude form of translation software that allowed the Union's researchers to extrapolate a simplified meaning of the message.

If the translation was proper, the message read " **Greetings. We, the sender of this message is known as the Agnaktor species. We are from a planet named Agnius. Are you friendly aliens or not?** "

Whoever sent it must be a xenophile race, the Prime Chief's advisors deduced. One that was committed to societal understanding and cooperation.

The statement generated one new theory as to why the Indoraptors haven't found other forms of civilization yet; from the tone and the polite grammar of the message, the sender of that message appeared to be cautious about first-contact protocol, unquestionably not desiring hostility of any kind. Perhaps they feared the prospect of inviting unfriendly entities into their borders? Very likely, according to self-appointed xenosociologists who frequently cited fringe theories.

Back then, such theorists would be ignored, but with the emergence of the alien message, their theory of self-imposed isolation sounded more plausible than the concept of 'Fermi Paradox' that some scientists uncovered from the Archives.

The appointed linguists had put into words an equally polite answer to respond the Agnaktor's message. It reads " **To the Agnaktors, we Indoraptors of planet Earth would like to greet you as equals. Do you desire a friendly contact and diplomatic relationship with us?** "

And so a plan was formulated to request the aliens to send a ship or two to serve as their first-contact ambassador. The Indoraptors would send theirs too, as well as two translators working onboard two destroyer-class ships, _UMV Carnotaur_ and _UMV Hyenadon_. The plan was, if the event went smoothly without any hostilities done, the aliens would be given permission to land on the homeworld and initiate communication. But should there be aggression of any kind, the aliens would be given ultimatum to abandon Union-controlled space at once; failure to comply would result in the aliens getting arrested or blown apart with their ships. First things first, the linguists had to perfect the rudimentary translation software that the aliens provided before.

The meeting was scheduled in Zulu system, a star system which lacked habitable planets due to all celestial bodies there being toxic planets, hot steamy planets, and gas giant. Thanks to the abundant of resources in the system, especially rare metals and Helium-3 for starship fuel, a frontier outpost was constructed to secure the Union's valuable properties.

Admiral Ender took the opportunity to directly welcome the unknown civilization by staying onboard the _UMV Coelacanth_ , all the while maintaining a near-continuous connection with Adar Flam Spaceport; no doubt the other admirals remaining on the station would want to witness it too. Such enthusiasm was warranted, since a true meeting with aliens outside of Earth would be written in history books as the most extraordinary event ever in the Union's history.

"Comms, what time is it now?" Ender asked.

"0900 sir, if our calculation is correct, the Agnaktor diplomats will arrive in the system in fifteen minutes or less," the officer replied.

"Very well. Did the Chiefs say anything about the aliens' FTL capacity, government type, and the like?"

"It appears that they possess the same kind of warp drive as ours, sir. Their political system seems to be a form of autonomous republic. As for the rest, the Chiefs did not release any more new information," the officer replied as he displayed some Intel in his computer. The anxious admiral closed in to examine the information.

"Autonomous? As in having democracy and voting rights? If so, then I sincerely hope that they won't have a problem befriending a military republic like ours."

The subsequent pause was quickly interrupted by warp energy detection via the ship's long-range scanners. That could only mean one thing; first-contact protocol was going to be implemented soon.

 **-x-x-x-x-x-**

 _Indoraptor Year 380, February 26th, Valzack Residence on Earth..._

Seated in front of the living room's television alongside his mother, Raizex raptly paid attention to everything the TV announcer reported on the Union's major first-contact scenario. That's right, a very special and world-changing event where the Indoraptors experienced far, far ahead beyond their human makers' imagination. They actually encountered aliens! Raizex could imagine how the humans might feel a serious case of bitterness just now.

Two-legged reptiles in rich red scales and short, crested beaks referred to themselves as 'Agnaktors', and that they came from a tropical planet some 34.9 light years away called Agnius, where frequent volcanic activity gave rise to jungles and swamps more verdant than Lemuria's.

After making their landing in Washington, the Prime Chief and his diplomats and translators greeted the red lizards, making sure to remain respectful but also cautious as to how the aliens behave.

The aliens in turn gave their salute in a supposedly cheery way. Their language seemed fast-paced, but to accommodate their interaction with the Indoraptors, the aliens slowed their speech to a more manageable level.

"I'm glad they let you back home, son." his mother whispered, still watching the breaking news.

"What? It's not like I requested it. The other 'greens' were given some free time, too." the young male lizard shrugged, of course he was not expecting to have his homecoming day handed over so early in his service history.

"Either because the Prime Chief wishes for everyone to witness this, or... because Admiral Ender wanted you to be safe."

"Wait, what? You know him?" Raizex looked at his mother with disbelieving eyes.

"Oh yes I do. In fact, he's your father's mentor, and they still maintained contact after all this time. If anything, I dare to bet that Ender let you work in military analysis just because he's afraid both Laurent and I would come barging through his door at night should anything bad happen to you. You know how dangerous your line of work is." Amena answered nonchalantly, her eyes wandered from the TV for a while.

The confused Raizex chose to shut his mouth from asking more questions. A good choice, for the official interview with an Agnaktor ambassador just started on TV.

" _Thank you for joining the conference, ladies and gentlemen, and thank you very much to Ambassador Xilan of the Agnaktor Republic for your presence here. It's an honor,_ " the Union's diplomat, Kieran Zerrith opened the session.

" _Likewise, Emissary Kieran Zerrith. I am very glad that our first interaction is done in a diplomatic and courteous way. My people are very interested to initiate peaceful interaction with the Union._ " Ambassador Xilan replied, using his gadget to translate the Agnaktor language, Vasilis, into English language.

" _For today, you may refer to me using Kieran_." the emissary offered. Ambassador Xilan caught on quickly with the new culture.

" _I see. Is using people's first name an accepted tradition among your people? We Agnaktors usually refer to people by mentioning their occupation title first, followed by last name. First name-basis is only acceptable in family interaction._ "

" _In our non-formal activities, we do use first name to call people. Although this discussion with you is... very formal, to say the least, I would be happy to lessen the tension by generating a laid-back atmosphere, despite public norms dictating that last-name basis is the norm of formal meetings.._ "

" _Ah, you are truly gracious, I suppose. From my observation, you are willing to conduct conversations while performing things to make it feel approachable, such as using first-names when talking and presenting drinks, it seems._ " the ambassador noted as he saw two Indoraptor servants brought him and Emissary Kieran two cups of warm beverages. The Indoraptor emissary nodded in eagerness.

" _Yes. During our earlier interaction before this meeting, you shared your genetic structure to our scientific community, allowing us to determine what foods and drinks are safe for your digestive system, and we are 100% certain that you are able to consume these with no danger. Now, what we have here is called 'tea', an herbal plant grown on mountain valleys. We used them to make beverages_ ," Emissary Kieran described the drinks to the fascinated alien, " _The tea we have in our cups here is classified as 'jasmine tea', brewed from small but fragrant jasmine flowers that are dried up and powdered to give an aromatic taste._ " the audience was unsure if the Agnaktor found it interesting or disgusting, but they kept looking at him with high expectation.

The emissary patiently watched as the alien ambassador tasted the tea a bit, " _I am impressed! While the drink is earthly brown in color, it does have a pleasing aroma. I never thought you'd indulge me in a culinary diplomacy_."

The audience laughed.

" _Well, yes, but... while talking about politics, sapient rights and fleet strength is more preferable than this, our Prime Chief decided that by introducing your people to mundane things like our traditional beverage, your people won't feel intimidated by our governmental system or military prowess. We may be naturally suitable for battles and such, but we can be resourceful and inquisitive in science and engineering at times. As of now, we have no plans to expand our territories aggressively._ "

" _Ah, yes. I've seen how big your ships are, and how many military vessels you have orbiting Earth_." Ambassador Xilan shifted slightly. Raizex could see how the red reptile glanced back and forth between the emissary and the surrounding audience.

" _I assume that you're uncomfortable?_ "

" _More like worried that I somehow made a wrong first impression on your people_."

" _Don't worry, ambassador. You haven't done us any wrongdoing. We aren't going to berate your people for that_ ," Kieran gently assured the ambassador.

" _If you say so_."

" _Alright, now that we are becoming more open to each other, why don't you tell us about your Republic?_ " the audience fixed their position so they could see Emissary Kieran more clearly, _"For example, what title do your highest leader use, and how do you elect your leaders?_ "

" _Our Republic is governed by an Executive, elected once per fifteen Agnaktor years, whose job is to direct the Governors beneath him to do their jobs appropriately. A Governor is a middle-level leader responsible for managing planetary sectors, while a nation is ruled by ministers and their respective Senatorial House. This decentralization is pretty much similar to your Overseers and administrative Chiefs, with the exception that our Executive holds no ultimate rule over our Republic, while your Prime Chief does. A Governor is elected in each sector every ten years, and a minister is elected in each nation every five years._ "

" _It's very complex, ambassador. Are you sure the Republic isn't troubled by the succeeding political tumult?_ "

" _We've been living with it for centuries, but at the very least we are doing some good_."

As Raizex excused himself to fetch a glass of water, Amena changed the TV channel to other programs; almost all of them aired the interview with Ambassador Xilan to a certain degree as both him and the emissary continued with other topics. Some had the interview aired without commentary, while some others had spectators voicing their opinions from the safety of their studio rooms. The old female Indoraptor knew the talk would cover all topics, which would most likely be overshadowed by civil debates, aired live at late night to boot.

Raizex went back to his spot on the sofa when Amena turned off the television. "I think we've seen enough."

"Why?" a bored look passed in his mother's eyes before she responded.

"They'll steer the whole talk into political affairs."

"Isn't it a good thing?"

The female Indoraptor snorted, "Good only for the folks above. We everyday people will only care if something is directly affecting our daily lives, boy. As long as they don't discuss important matters like border access, migration and immigration issues, or even cross-cultural projects at schools, we'll probably not bother batting an eye to the talks."

"Yeah, but won't it be good to have somebody as a neighbor?"

"A neighbor is virtuous if they don't steal your resources or repress your collective values."

"And we have no idea whether the Agnaktors will do either of them?"

A grim nod from his mother gave Raizex something to mull over. Now that the show's over, both of them vacated the living room.

 **-x-x-x-x-x-**

 _Sylvon Year 2192 (Indoraptor Year 380), February 27th, planet Akantorin..._

The two Sylvons, Councilor Astrax and the unidentified spymistress, once again stood in the female's private office room, observing the hacked live vid broadcasting the Agnaktor Republic's pacific encounter with the Indoraptor Union.

Normally, they'd disregard any news coming from the Republic space since they already had quite some spies tapping into their satellites, but with two imminent competitors slowly paving their way into solid and mutual relationship, the future of the Sylvon's Council was in a crossroad. What the Council wanted was to bring the Agnaktors into subservience and trick the Indoraptors into waging a war against the Imperium of Terra. The first-contact event between the Union and the Republic dictated the spymistress to alter her schemes.

"What do you make of this?"

"Personally, councilor? I think attracting the Republic into our side would prove difficult in the coming years. Remember, we still have the Human Imperium to contend with. We can't fight a two-front war."

Who says anything about a war?"

"There's always a chance of a direct confrontation with either of them, and we are not ready!"

To be honest, Councilor Astrax had never seen the usually stoic spymistress becoming upset like this. Of course, true to her nature, the spymistress shook her head, took some deep breaths and returned to her previous passive expression. The councilor curled his facial tentacles, unsure if her preceding outburst was real or not.

"I could have the commodores send their best scout ships to monitor the latest development from up close, as I originally proposed."

The spymistress caressed her tentacles as she considered the offer, "Can they do it from around the Union's frontier systems instead of entering them outright?" she muted the vid before turning to face the male Sylvon, "Not to disturb their outposts, explicitly. Find out how many strategic star systems they hold and which one has the least amount of patrols every 9 solar cycles. If the conditions are right, we might be able to stage a fake pirate attack." in her mind, the spymistress simply wanted the attacking 'pirates' to just steal vital resources the Union might had in their pockets. They had to know if the new adversary own anything that could give them an edge against the Miralis organization, and the Council of Akantorin in general. Should the Union's Prime Chief noticed something out of ordinary, the Council, specifically Councilor Astrax, could shift the blame onto another party.

"It may take some time, but I'll see to it."

"And lastly, pretend as if you don't know anything. Don't let the other non-aligned councilors to snoop around too much." unsaid in her sentence was an advice to have anyone who knew too much be silenced, whatever the means would be.

Astrax didn't like how things turned out, but knowing that they'd be in greater danger if inaction was chosen, he needed to have accidents engineered to get rid of possible pro-alien factions within the Council.

 **-x-x-x-x-x-**

 _ **EXTRACTING SPECIES PROFILE : AGNAKTOR**_

 _Species Name : Agnaktor_

 _Scientific Name : Ignis reptilis vermiculo_

 _Classification : Reptilian_

 _Homeworld : Agnius, Nira system_

 _Preferable Habitats : Tropical and Savanna_

 _Lifespan : ~85 years._

 _Length : ~3.7 meters_

 _Height : 1.9 meters_

 _Weight : ~40 kilograms_

 _Diet : Omnivore_

 _Locomotion : Bipedal_

 _General Customs : Xenophile, Individualist_

 _Normal Attributes : Thrifty, intelligent, physically weak, fairly xenophilic._

 _Extraordinary Attributes : Higher-than-average IQ._

 _ **Overview :**_

 _The lizard-like Agnaktors thrived well in their tropical homeworld, where their society has had many encounters with volcanic eruptions for over three millennia. A long time ago, big powerful Agnaktors once thrived at the feet of volcanoes. Taking advantage of their hot and humid world, the Agnaktors developed tough scales that are elastic yet resistant to heat, even when traversing volcanic hollows and peaks. This tradition persisted for seven hundred years until their equivalent of the Renaissance Age, where they slowly learned how to create new substances like plastic. During their 'Iron Age' and 'Medieval Age', physical prowess was one of the most defining traits of ancient Agnaktors._

 _Granted, since Agnius is twice bigger than Earth, it is also more prone to tectonic shifts. Almost every tectonic shift on Agnius resulted in volcanic eruptions, but once or twice a tsunami may occur as well. These disasters often transpire near coastal areas, therefore the Agnaktors tend to build their civilization in valleys and hills._

 _The journeys through the lava-filled hollows were not without reason. The frequent eruption released a lot of precious gems and materials that they could use in manufacturing buildings, vehicles, electronics, and the like. The closer they search to a volcano's core, the more materials they'd get to mine, although this journey could sometimes cost them the lives of valuable workers._

 _As they slowly began to enter more modern ages, the Agnaktors that used to mine and carry minerals from the ground were replaced by drones and robots. As a result, the Agnaktors lost their physical aptitude and eventually left the dry valley of volcanic regions to live in rainforests and swamps, where they adapted into omnivorous dietary. Their primary occupation also changed, from mining minerals and manufacturing metallic tools to farming and architecture. A century before they completed their first spaceship saw a resurging interest to renew their manufacturing, although the modern Agnaktors are no longer as tough as their ancestors used to be._

 _Unlike Indoraptors that can switch between two-legged and quadrupedal stances, Agnaktors are fully bipedal. It should be noted that the modern ones have longer legs with thicker scales than their ancestors; this is important as they have to waddle through mud, rivers and lakes to get to wherever they needed to go. That method of transportation still persisted even after public vehicles were mass produced, likely because of their planet's very large number of dense forests and marshlands._

 _As education and civil rights developed from Year 1578 to Year 1711, and then a second Renaissance surged from Year 1750 up to Year 2050, the Agnaktors slowly transformed their government system from feudalism to oligarchy, and finally into a Republic which practiced direct democracy._

 _The Republic's spread to space was still fairly limited, as they only established several mining stations on gas giants and asteroids in their star systems. The two space stations orbiting Nira system are merely representing 15 percent of their total population (approximately 13 billion people as of 2210)._


	7. Chapter 7

**Uninvited Aliens**

 _Indoraptor Year 380, March 28th, Adar Flam Spaceport..._

"Have you been trained in melee combat, Private Valzack?"

"No, ma'am. My training in combat and weapon manipulation consists of merely light firearms."

"Alright. I have something for you to see."

Raizex was attending his usual training roster in Adar Flam's Exercise Sector, or to be more accurate, his self-scheduled practice done in his leisure. For some intention, Admiral Kalini Ender approached the young private several weeks ago and granted him a free pass to use the Sector's paraphernalia whenever the young male had spare time. Regardless of the combat analyst's workload, he enjoyed that one bit of freedom to try out the different guns and exercise tools at his pleasure. His trainer's sudden appearance in the training room today seemed to be a coincidence, although Raizex suspected it might be more than just a coincidence. The trainer's choice of words reflected it.

"I request permission to ask a question, ma'am."

"Permission granted."

"Your choice of words sounds deliberate. Is there anything I should know?" the perplexed Raizex voiced his thoughts politely.

"Yes, there is." the trainer, Lieutenant Malia, nodded impassively, "Come closer. See this long bundled object in my possession? It's a long, bladed weapon. We previously ran physical tests to see whether you're fit for active duty on ground-based missions or not. As far as we can tell, you're fast, nimble as I suspected, and able to sneak past opponents while taking them out one by one. I am personally wondering if you are fit to carry a weapon this long."

Raizex nodded in affirmation. "Yes, ma'am. I am actually more talented in sports and motoric abilities than cognitive-based tasks," he acknowledged, "and I'm fine with small guns. I can deal with it."

"Nonetheless, you chose to serve in analysis duty. It doesn't give you much exercise, does it?"

"If I'm correct, combat analysis requires one to be fast-paced and receptive to all available Intel, ma'am."

"Maybe, but Admirals Kalini Ender and Sherina Rosa clearly don't think so. They think your talent may perhaps be wasted in that job position. They requested that you be taught a new ability."

Malia put the long object in gray cloth on the ground, unveiling it calculatingly while the gawking Raizex let his curiosity got the better of him. Carefully lifting the item on her right hand, the trainer showed the curious young Indoraptor what appeared to be a glossy silver spear or something similar to it.

"A spear?" Raizex lifted one eyebrow.

"One of our specially-crafted javelins, or glaives as the ironsmiths coined it." Lieutenant Malia presented the object, now revealed to be an ancient melee weapon with proud voice, "The smiths did not lie at all when they told me the damn thing's manufactured from the best platinum and titanium. If I got lots of money, I'd buy this thing in a heartbeat."

"Damn, just... wow!"

Raizex let his eyes trailed across the platinum glaive, his claws gently touched the weapon to get a sensation of how primitive but futuristic-looking the glaive was. The weapon was two-edged, with a long spear-like blade facing the front of the weapon while the shorter blade was located in the rear, close to the handle. The front blade was sharp and smooth, unlike the rear blade's slightly wavy design. The glaive's handle was durable and had a rough texture; probably to keep the weapon from sliding past the wielder's fingers. The glaive's material looked sturdier compared to his battle armor, or any armor at that. As the lieutenant pointed out later, there was a button of sort that could be pushed to allow the wielder to shorten the weapon into a 'portable' mode, perhaps designed to let it slip past unwary guards. Pushing the button again extended the glaive to its original size.

Much to Raizex's surprise, Malia claimed that the weapon could be sharpened by using grindstones as opposed to special sharpening machines, which may be purchased from mountainside miners on the colonies.

"Very well. Now that you're invested, why don't we try your skills with the glaive?" the lieutenant unexpectedly asked.

"Wait, right now? We're going to learn about it right now?"

"Yes, Valzack. Right now, while you still have half an hour of free time."

The clumsy young Indoraptor looked around nervously. The training room was spacious, wide enough to accommodate dozens of people practicing glaive using at the same time, but Raizex still felt uneasy at the prospect of damaging nearby tools with his new weapon.

As if on cue, Malia led him into a broader area free of any obstacles. The open area was apparently located in a spare room, supposedly used for competitive sports during break time. Moving aside several objects to the center of the room, which Raizex surmised to be jumping platforms, Malia turned to look at the fidgety private. "This should be satisfactory. Okay, private, have you been taught how to use a combat knife?" the trainer expectantly gazed at the young male.

"Not much, just simple attack moves and how to block incoming attacks, I think."

"Huh, if that's so, you'll want to try swinging the glaive in a two-three hit attack. Try to imagine that it is your knife, elongated."

Raizex nodded eagerly. Carefully positioning himself on top of a platform, Raizex swung his glaive deliberately. First swing went up, followed by a spinning attack to the left, then a spin move to the right.

"Nice!" Malia praised.

"But it was just three swings, ma'am? Nothing out of ordinary." Raizex was confused with her applaud.

"Correct, but did you notice that you're moving quite fast for a novice? As if you already know how to use it!"

"Nah," Raizex shook his head in incredulity, "it was just enthusiasm on my behalf."

Unsatisfied, the lieutenant gestured him to try again, this time Raizex was to demonstrate a four-hit attack. Returning back to his footing, Raizex took a breath before making his move. First swing went sideways, then upward, and then downward before finishing it with a stab to the air. All of which were done by spinning the glaive in one hand, all the while his body followed the movement fluidly.

"Amazing, now give me a five-hit demonstration!"

Adrenaline coursed through his body as Raizex followed his order. Bringing the front blade down with a spin attack, he continued the move with a hit to the left and right by twirling the glaive in his right hand, and finished it by swinging it upward and a piercing gesture down to the ground.

"Very good. You haven't mastered the more efficient fighting techniques for now, but I'm pleased nevertheless. Thankfully, we are still in the 'novice' level, so I won't blame you for trying to look like a badass. Want to practice further?"

"Thanks, but I'm afraid my work hour will begin in ten minutes," the excited Raizex had to let go of his desire to train more once he saw the clock in the room notified him of the time, "I'll see you again next week at 13:00, maybe?"

The smiling Malia nodded as the young private returned the glaive back to her and jogged out of the room.

 **-x-x-x-x-x-**

 _Indoraptor Year 380, June 1st, Adar Flam Spaceport..._

A yawning Raizex was walking out of the spaceport's restroom after a training session with his compatriots when a station-wide alarm rang.

 **BREEEP! BREEEP! BREEEP!**

"What the hell?!" he exclaimed loudly.

He wasn't the only one freaking out. All over the station, all personnel scrambled to their workstations, trying to figure out the cause of the alarm.

"Check the long-range scans! See if there's anything abnormal on radar!"

"Get the 1st and 2nd fleets' leaders online now!"

"Open comms channel to the Agnaktor Republic! See if they have anything to say about this!"

Could it be an unauthorized Agnaktor ship approaching the spaceport? No, it couldn't be. All known Agnaktor ships were already registered to the Union's database when an embassy was opened on Earth. Could it be pirate ships? Very unlikely, as there were no pirate activities in Union space, and Agnaktors were not known to have mercenary fleets as well. Furthermore, no asteroid was heading to the homeworld.

Which might lead to one possible conclusion; an anonymous alien civilization has discovered them.

"Valzack, hey! You're going to the wrong Sector!" A shouting from behind stopped Raizex in his tracks.

"Ma'am! Thought I saw you heading straight to the docking bay!"

"Not today, private! I've got more important things to do. We are going to the Combat Information Sector this instant!" the distressed personnel turned out to be Lieutenant Malia herself. Raizex could only watch as she dragged him down the hallway, brushing past other Indoraptors scrambling to get to where they were supposed to be. The alarm's blaring got louder the closer they were to the Combat Information Sector.

"Wish I could ask more questions while we head there."

"Ask away, boy."

"Does anybody even know what the hell is going on right now?"

"A very excellent question, boy."

The lieutenant's snarky comment invited a sigh on Raizex's behalf. If nobody knew the full extent of the situation, then there's no point in asking, Raizex thought.

The Combat Information Sector was full of people, all of them were busy typing rapidly on their computers and checking reports from all sectors in the station. As Raizex hurriedly walked to his work desk and did his job in quiet anticipation, he could hear many personnel chatting to each other, most likely comparing data analysis and discerning the long-range scanners. One minute passed, then five, then ten, and everyone was still on edge, waiting for something that had yet to come. Concerned, Raizex checked his computer for anything new, crossing his fingers just in case he missed something.

Then, everybody went back to work in silence. Did something happen? All the chatter went quiet all of the sudden, so there must be something serious.

Not long after, a notification beep came from the sector's main screen. Half-heartedly expecting an error message to came up, Raizex stared keenly at the computer, so did the rest of the room's occupants.

The rest of the day was pretty much a blur in the young Indoraptor's mind. As far as he could remember, approximately three hours after the alarm, the Chiefs on Earth claimed to have received a message from an alien society, just like what they had months prior with the Republic of Agnaktors, complete with a translation software. However, unlike the Agnaktor's polite message which suggested xenophilia from the get go, this one was written in an expressionless tone. It may shed some insight into the writer's true nature, the Chiefs said. Raizex didn't listen thoroughly to what Admiral Sherina Rosa said to the listening crew about the new alien's message; somewhere along the line of " **We are Sylvons. We are from Akantorin. Who are you? Are you a threat?** "

The dark, serious tone of the message sparked fears among the public, above all the chance of the new aliens being particularly hateful of other intelligent lifeform. The masses of both the Union and the Republic, the admiral claimed, were told to refrain themselves from insulting the aliens, which may lead to a bloody conflict between the races. As long as both sides play nice, there was no need to be afraid.

Not sure why, but all Indoraptors that Raizex inquired later when the shock wore off seemed to hold a feeling of aversion toward the Sylvon's language. They said the language's written form was... what was the adjective? Flanged? Inarticulate? Whatever the reason, each one shared the same dislike toward the Sylvon. But why? Why hate a species from its language alone?

A few hours later, the young private was seated back in front of his work desk. From what he could gather, the Prime Chief delegated some scientists to try and figure out the real intention behind the communication attempt. There was a noticeable difference between the Agnaktors and the unknown aliens. The red lizards were kind enough to share a bit about who and what they were before making formal contact with the Union. The Sylvons, on the other hand, said nothing about who they were, what they were, and whether or not they have any interest in befriending the Indoraptors. They were hiding a thing or two about what they really wanted.

That was as much information as Raizex could find. Until new Intel got released from the planetary Chiefs, there was no use trying to dig for more.

All he could hope was for the second contact with these Sylvons to be as gracious as the previous.

 **-x-x-x-x-x-**

 _ **EXTRACTING SPECIES PROFILE : SYLVON**_

 _Species Name : Sylvon_

 _Scientific Name : Vulgus nivalis_

 _Classification : Molluscoid (?)_

 _Homeworld : Akantorin, Madara system_

 _Preferable Habitats : Tundra and Arctic_

 _Lifespan : ~110 years._

 _Length : N/A_

 _Height : 1,8 meters_

 _Weight : ~40 kilograms_

 _Diet : Omnivore_

 _Locomotion : Bipedal_

 _General Customs : Fanatic Materialist, Individualist._

 _Normal Attributes : Decadent (reliant on slaves), politically devious, ruthless capitalist, prehensile facial tentacles._

 _Extraordinary Attributes : Two pupils in both eyes for sharper vision, extremely adaptive to cold, dry biomes._

 _ **Overview :**_

 _The two-legged species that is known as the Sylvons might not fit into standard species categorization. On one side, they are clearly mollusks with facial tentacles in place of moustache. Their three-fingered hands and three-toed feet seem to support this as they are more like individual suction cups rather than fingers or toes. But the most puzzling thing is that the Sylvons virtually possess bones and vertebrae, albeit highly flexible to compensate for their near aquatic lifestyle. It is speculated that these bones are not actual bones, but segmented internal armors similar to that of lobsters._

 _Located in the Madara system, some 101 light years away from Sol, Akantorin is a cross between alpine and tundra planet. Nearly 50 percent of the planet is full of cold plains saturated in thin mist, while oceans took 30 percent of the planet's surface. The rest is populated by temperate forests dotting the planet's mountain ranges. Sunlight is common on the planet, but it does nothing to mitigate the chilling temperature._

 _Living on the cold, windy planet that is Akantorin did not bring the Sylvons into societal harmony and mutual teamwork. In a shocking turn of event, the molluscoid species ended up being profligate, believing only in power and wealth. They are not ashamed of using slaves as work force amongst their society. This practice is reportedly rooted as far back as Sylvon Year 644, when the most primordial form of monarchy took shape. Fast forward to Year 993, a global war took place as a response to this caste system. The rebels declared their intention to wipe off the tradition of caste and slavery from the face of Akantorin. Needless to say, the rebels lost the war, and their children and grandchildren were castrated into the social caste of 'slaves' as the ultimate form of punishment, never to ascend the system._

 _Oligarchy governmental system did not rear its head until Year 1690, when the first electrical machineries, such as computers, telephones, and steam power plants became abundant among the populace. By the time those technology became commonplace (circa Year 1835), only those in middle and high castes of the Sylvon Council have free access to them._

 _The Sylvon's Empire is a 'Council' in name only. All Councilors are chosen only from the highest and richest of all caste, and they serve only those who benefitted their goals. Political games and backstabbing is already seen as normal, and maybe even encouraged by many. Suffice to say, the Sylvons' hearts are as cold as the snow and wind of their homeworld._


	8. Chapter 8

**Dreading of Things to Come**

 _Imperium Year 2176 (Indoraptor Year 380), December 3rd, Parallel Earth, General Patton's Office..._

"Good morning, general. We hope you're not sitting around twiddling your thumbs."

"I am at loss of thought, Julia Samson, not waiting for a miracle."

"I believe it would be prudent if you show up at the next meeting in Saturday, sir. Everyone, plus Lord Ashford, was disappointed with your nonattendance in the previous summit."

"I don't think I can attend the following summit as well. Not if I have nothing useful to present, Commander Ryder."

Damn it, six o'clock in the morning and his subordinate already used sarcasm to begin their conversation. Obviously, Commanders Julia Samson and Adam Ryder wasn't paying attention at how their general preferred to have a long rest, for he had been cross-referencing Intel from all available sources since last night.

"Pardon my language, general," Julia Samson replied with monotone voice, "but we were waiting for you to announce your findings in front of the Supreme Leader two days ago; your absence instead gave us worry."

"Shall we tell Lord Ashford to postpone the Saturday assembly?" Adam Ryder projected his idea.

General Patton refrained from responding. Standing up from his seat, the gloomy general wandered away from the two commanders, who were trading glances at each other. Walking toward a mirror at the very corner of his office, the general stared at his reflection, letting himself lost in his own point of view.

Both Samson and Ryder were unsure at how to gain the general's attention.

Not that it mattered, as Patton intentionally ignored them.

Months have passed since investigations were conducted on the true nature of the Indoraptor's Union empire. Questions that the Imperium's leaders hoped to answer regarding this mystery yielded little to satisfy their damned curiosity, if anything more questions arose from the unknown. Questions that nobody could find a proper solution for, unless the Imperium made contact directly with the Union. Such an option could, and would eventually put the entire Humanity at risk of interstellar war. The Imperium's Supreme Leader, Lord Ashford, demanded more resources and manpower to be diverted to this relentless search for the truth ever since last year. No one, not even General Patton, could predict how this affair would bring in due course. Truth be told, all those fears and worry came from prejudice, wasn't it? The Imperium's researchers haven't even determined whether the Indoraptors were friendly or not. There was also zero indication that the Indoraptors were plotting the death of mankind, so why the desperate need to study them? Patton figured it'd be easy to leave all the problem-solving to the politicians, but the Human's empire was of totalitarianism, not democracy. A politician's opinion would not change the empire as a whole.

A coughing returned the general's mind back to earth. Commander Samson had stepped closer to the sullen man.

"If you don't mind, we are willing to hand over all information we've studied so far, sir. We can allow you to read all the Intel at your leisure while we vacated the room."

Gripped in the woman's hands were datapads containing the results of all the summits General Patton neglected to join. He doubted if there was anything new in the reports. After minutes of contemplation, the man nodded heavily at Samson's suggestion and permitted them to leave.

"Very well. For today, I suggest you and Ryder to continue your duty. If anybody asks about my situation, just tell them I'll be ready to talk when the next summit begins."

"As you wish, general."

The two commanders saluted him before leaving. Returning back to his desk, Patton checked all of the datapads for new records, skipping past all that they previously learnt until now. Turns out, the scientists had successfully identified two other species which attempted communication with the Union. The former was called Agnaktor, reptiles originating from a tropical but volcanic planet. The latter was named Sylvon, hailing from a mountainous planet with below-average temperature. From what the Imperium's best minds has calculated, no hostilities were made during both contacts, but the general's colleagues claimed that it'd be a matter of time before all three aliens became a threat to humanity.

The most concerning problem, Patton recognized, circulated around the fact that the Indoraptors were predatory in nature. According to the Intel in the datapad, the researchers spent countless days and nights trying to tap into the Union's equivalent of internet system and dig as much information as they could. What they had in their hands were frightening, to say the least; the Indoraptors were artificially designed by those who came before them, deliberately created as biological weapons that surpassed their creators, and quite possibly humanity. They possess teeth and claws capable of shredding flesh with ease, and tough, black scales as natural armor that resist gunfire. Added to their unnatural features were night vision complemented by echolocation, plus this abnormality to learn new knowledge very quickly. Also, the Indoraptors could run both on two legs and on all fours, something that humans couldn't do. Even worse, they not only survive, but flourished in many extraterrestrial garden worlds as if they were immune to possible alien diseases. Suggestions were forwarded to have at least one Indoraptor be captured for bisection, as many of the scientists suspected the unknown aliens to be chimeric in some capacity. No wonder why Lord Ashford believed Humanity's future was at risk.

Maybe, just maybe, the reasoning behind all this distressed pursuit for facts was mankind's irrational fear of reptiles, due to how irregular and abhorrent reptiles looked in the eyes of mammals.

Strangely, the same proposal was not suggested at all for the Agnaktors. Aside from the fact that the crimson-colored lizards were industrious and inquisitive, their fleet size was kind of smaller, too small to actually pose a danger to anyone. Sure, the Agnaktors were handy in mining, trade, and arts, and could possibly control the flow of money as long as they stood strong in business, but their Republic was indeed unsystematic enough to be a credible threat. The general snorted as he filed away the information.

Hah, through market domination, the Republic won't be a problem in the long run, in due course.

Next came the Sylvons. At a glance, they looked like humans with tentacles on their faces, but the empire's researchers were certain beyond any doubt that the Sylvons, whatever they are, were actually mollusks with crustacean armor beneath their smooth skin. Patton noticed yet another anomaly in the Imperium and its politics, because despite the apparent fact that the two-legged mollusks unashamedly practiced slavery and political assassinations, the Supreme Leader paid no interest in the so-called ' _Council of Akantorin_ '. Could it be due to the Union's more intimidating presence, or perhaps Lord Ashford was enraptured with the whispers about the Indoraptor Union living on a _parallel Earth_? Either way, there was no way of knowing for sure.

This is truly BAD news. The Imperium of Terra outright refused to bow to alien masters, no matter who they are and what their intentions could be. But then, a memory surfaced; one that spoke of Commander Samson's view on the concept of parallel Earth.

Never for a second in his life did the general hold faith in such fictional claim.

Then again, anyone who lived over one century ago never had devotion in space exploration, let alone space colonization.

Was he a fool for not trying to uncover the reality?

Or was he intelligent enough to distance himself away from unproven theories?

Only Patton himself could answer that question, for one way or another, the people of the Imperium would initiate contact with the aliens in due time.

 **-x-x-x-x-x-**

 _Indoraptor Year 380, December 6th, Lemuria's planetside port..._

Ah, Lemuria. The Union's best colony world and the one which experienced fast growth in only three years. Soaring spires and towers dotted the city where the colony ship once landed, transforming it from a disorganized collection of shacks and makeshift cabins into simple-looking but futuristic houses, colorful shops, tall offices, burgeoning factories and many, many other amenities that all could share together without barrier of any kind. Around 83,520 Indoraptors were registered as permanent occupants of the colony, in addition to 19,803 people that were either non-permanent occupants from Earth or aliens with migration access from the Union.

The city, Messana, was as large as London back on Earth, large enough to possibly house over three hundred thousand residents up until three decades later. Any more than that and a new city would have to be constructed to accommodate the influx of newcomers. Thankfully, the surrounding villages were able to lesser the near-constant stream of visitors from Earth, the colonies, and the migrating aliens (namely Agnaktors). But today, something bad was happening.

Raizex Valzack couldn't take his eyes off the window as his transport shuttle landed on the colony's planetside port, drinking in all the glory and beauty of the planet's architectures. When he finally did, he took some precious seconds to re-examine his to-do list; Find out why certain parts in the Civilian Zone of the city failed to establish communication with the rest of the city's regions. Coming with him were Vion Hyperion, a male sniper and Rivea Vascon, a male recon specialist and a dual-wielding dagger expert. Accompanying them was Xivena, an Agnaktor sent by Lemuria's governing Overseer to guide the three soldiers across the city's Civilian Zone.

Sometime before the mission started, Lemuria's Overseer Qorina Arienne broadcasted an urgent report on how comms system in the residential area failed to turn on after a brief power outage. Both Indoraptor and Agnaktor engineers tried to install emergency networking systems, but so far none had worked longer than an hour. Now, it was the Agnaktor's task to bring the three Indoraptors up to speed; all available Intel indicated a mobster's plot to cripple Messana's industry, but preliminary evidence gathered by the colony's peacekeeping force suggested a potential terrorism at work.

"Does anybody have a relative or a friend on the ground?" Xivena asked in the middle of his briefing.

"No." came Vion's response immediately.

"Me neither." Rivea responded soon after.

"I do," replied Raizex, much to his companion's interest. "Her name is Lyra. She's working as the colony's internet specialist. She should be working in the city's administration office. But let's talk with the Overseer first; see if she knows something that Lyra doesn't."

"In which case, we'll have her stay in a safe spot. The governor could use her expertise to try and fix all this mess," said Xivena earnestly, much to Raizex's relief. "In which case, I agree with Valzack's idea. If our arrival is truly anticipated by Overseer Arienne, then the peacekeepers should have some data for us to work on."

Everyone nodded as the shuttle finally made its landing on the port. Walking toward the shuttle's door as it hissed open, Raizex raised a hand to block the fairly piercing sunlight as he and his comrades stepped out. He must've forgotten how, in Lemuria, sunlight is more prominent than on Earth.

After minutes of ID confirmation and registration by the port's security guards, the trio entered the port's terminal. Many people could be seen filling the seats and the halls of the terminal, perceptibly they might be tourists or immigrant workers waiting for ID clearance to go where they had to be. The Agnaktor led the trio away from the people, not batting an eye to anyone unless he really had to talk, to a receptionist or something.

"Raizex!"

"Lyra?!"

The sound of Raizex's girlfriend's shouting stopped the trio and their guide. From the building's exit gate, a female Indoraptor came close to them with eagerness... and panic in her eyes. Giving a brief but tight hug at her boyfriend, Lyra calmed herself by breathing deeply for a few seconds.

"Hey, babe. Glad we meet you here. We heard the colony needs help, so we were deployed to look into the matter."

"I can't talk much right now. We have to stay away from any crowd!" Lyra said hurriedly. The Indoarptor soldiers traded confused look to each other.

"Why? Is there something wrong, miss?" a curious Vion inquired.

Lyra looked around in a panic and said, "Shh, don't talk, not while the squid people are around. Please discuss about this in my office, shall we?" and with her hand gesture, she ushered the three soldiers and their guide away from the crowd of people around the spaceport. In their haste, Raizex caught vague glimpses of shady-looking aliens, most likely the molluscoid Sylvons, glancing at them from the distance, talking in hushed tones while pointing at the trio of Indoraptors clad in service armors.

Lyra didn't talk as they boarded a public transportation, nor did she instigate any exchange during the twenty-minute ride to the planet's government office. By the time they debarked from the public transportation, the female gave only another hand gesture to enter the building and into her work room straightaway, much to Raizex's dismay, but he refrained from saying anything.

As soon as Lyra closed the door to her office room, Raizex asked in frustration, "Alright Lyra, what's happening?! Why all the panic and..."

"I can't say anything that might compromise our safety. We're being watched," Lyra cut him short. "Long story short, I've been studying the new aliens and how they share their culture with us. I'll bet everything the Sylvons were the true cause behind this internet outage. Back when I watched the meeting between their diplomats and our emissary, I noticed that their councilor's words sounded like mere wariness between new aliens, but the more I think about it, the more things don't make sense."

Raizex shook his head trying to understand what they've got in their hands. Just hours ago, they were told about a possible sabotage act by gangsters to disrupt their colony, and now all of a sudden people began blaming aliens for it?

"I'm not the only one to be afraid of the squids, trust me." Lyra continued as if reading the young male's mind, "We, Agnaktors included, are getting more and more apprehensive with immigrants from Akantorin, chiefly because they flat-out refused to share their knowledge and tradition with us and generally being unsociable and secluded. I've performed several cross-referencing between their society and how humans from back then behaved when multiple people of different affiliations are put into the same space. Enough for me to say that the Sylvons do not have the best of intentions in mind."

"What do you want us to do, then?" turning on her computer, Lyra decided to respond to her friend's question by having them watch the interview between a councilor from the Sylvon's Council with an emissary from the Union, aired a few months ago when diplomats from the Council of Akantorin sent their delegations to greet the Union. The one who interviewed the speaking alien was the same Emissary who greeted the Agnaktor Republic's ambassador. The soldiers and Xivena couldn't pinpoint what exactly was wrong with it, aside from observations that revealed how the Sylvons implicitly disliked the Indoraptors' connection to spiritual wisdom and egalitarianism.

As they watched further, it became clear that the emissary's heartwarming words did little to satisfy the councilor's interest about the Indoraptors; rather, the mollusk's face exhibited an expression of condescension, no matter how straight-faced he tried to be in front of the audience.

Eventually the recording ended and Lyra turned the computer off.

"What are your fears, really?" Rivea said after the interview's recording was done. "The councilor just worded his sentences in poetic phrases, am I right? He just happens to be... not really compatible to our ways of thinking..." Lyra shook her head in disbelief.

"Exactly my point! All those phrases he used are actually veiled intimidations, meant to confuse us of what they are plotting to do! I've tried warning Overseer Arienne, but somehow the line's jammed. No communication can go in and out of the Civilian Zone!"

"What were they plotting?"

"Piracy," the word left Lyra's mouth, causing Xivena to gasp in surprise, "Unrestricted activities of mercenary groups and space bandits within our borders, disguised as security services coming in and out to safeguard our interests... or should I say, the Sylvon's interests." the female Indoraptor sniffed in disgust. Was that why the city's internet was interfered with? To prevent anyone of reporting pirate's activity in the city? Things were becoming more convoluted.

"Are you absolutely sure, babe?" Raizex asked cautiously.

"I am. There's no mistaking it." said the female.

Vion walked around in confusion. "Lady, do you really believe that bandits, alien bandits, are hiding amongst the populace here?" he queried.

"You know how distrustful we are as a species. You know why we shouldn't overlook suspicious sentences that one might utter, especially one that is so interspersed with bigoted politics." Lyra responded, "Remember how the alien diplomat reacted to the emissary's explanation about our empire. He evidently saw us as a detriment. And remember how the diplomat requested civilian access into our space; he didn't gently asked for it like the Agnaktors did, he demanded it with veiled threats."

"He threatened to let pirates attack us if our leaders don't let the Sylvons to enter?" Rivea wondered aloud, as did Xivena.

"Incorrect. More like he already knew that pirates from their space WILL attack us regardless of the Prime Chief's ultimate verdict. Extending his clout by having their people to reside here on Lemuria will very likely provide his Council with a validation to legalize mercenary activities everywhere, even on Earth." Unspoken in her speech was her apprehension of the Sylvon's maneuver; _and_ _you know what can happen when pirates invade our daily lives_.

In his mind, Raizex realized that the mission parameter has changed now; apprehend whoever was behind the information blackout in Messana, alien or not, and either bring them in alive for questioning or execute them for endangering the lives of the Union's people.


	9. Chapter 9

**The Imminent Quarrel**

 _ **PIRACY AND TERRORISM THREATEN OUR COLONY AND SPACE**_

 _December 6th, Year 380 by Anista Sherman_

 _This late afternoon at about 15:25 PM, residents in the Civilian District of Messana, Lemuria's capital city, experienced what is currently rumored to be a combination of both pirate and terrorist assaults at two different places; the main communication array complex at the north of the neighborhood and the Civilian District's Visitor Center. The comm tower was reportedly suffering from computer virus attack, causing the district to lose broadband connection for hours, whereas the residential area suffered bombings around public utility buildings, though the bombs in questions did not have large explosive radius._

 _Dozens of people in the district, both Indoraptors and Agnaktors, were injured in various degrees during the skirmish between the colony's peacekeepers and the perpetrators, albeit with miraculously zero casualties from both sides. There were three identified terrorists as of tonight; all of which are recognized as Sylvon residents. By the time of this article's publication, two Sylvon terrorists have been captured by one of the Union's soldiers and will be interrogated shortly._

 _Official statement from Lemuria's Overseer Qorina Arienne at 19:18 PM, with the approval of the colony's security force, indicated one suspect is still at large, and that the bombers presently under arrest will be tried according to the Union's Anti-Criminal Constitution. No proclamation came from the Akantorin Council regarding the possibility of this attack being either false flag operation or political intimidation._

 **-x-x-x-x-x-**

 _ **WIDESPREAD UNREST AS UNION CITIZENS PETITION SYLVONS BE FORCIBLY DEPORTED FROM UNION SPACE**_

 _December 7th, Year 380 by Anista Sherman (published with permission on the Frontier Life cyber forum)_

 _A series of vandalism acts perpetrated around Messana's Business and Administrative Districts sparked widespread protests from not only the colonists of Lemuria, but also on other colonies and Earth. Tens of thousands of people gathered in front of capital buildings, on Earth and the colonies as well, demanding that all Sylvons be extradited from Lemuria and be forbidden from entering Union Space ever again._

 _Early this morning between 5:03 AM to 7:56 AM, citizens and workers came to their workplaces, ready to carry out their daily duties, only to find the walls, windows, and even gateways of their place of work smeared in graffiti with racist writings, sometimes even whole posters full of offensive caricatures plastered everywhere. These graffiti and posters spoke of how the Indoraptors are 'a bunch of ugly lizards which should've been hunted to extinction', and how the Agnaktors are 'weedy and backwards in science and tradition'._

 _While the graffiti and posters didn't specify who put them there or why, the public, especially those of the Indoraptor Union were quick to blame the Sylvon residents as the source of the public discontent. The Sylvons' disconcerting reluctance to say anything, coupled with the fact that members of the molluscoid species orchestrated terrorism just the previous day, made them target of mass persecution._

 _The Union Prime Chief, Xen Alven, refused to comment much on the incident when asked, though he admittedly declared an emergency meeting with all the Union's generals and admirals, and allegedly contacted the Agnaktor Republic's Executive Zyr in the hopes of finding a mutually beneficial solution to the problem._

 _There is still no official word from the Akantorin Council on whether or not they accept the likelihood of their people being expatriated from Union and Republic Spaces._

 **-x-x-x-x-x-**

 _Indoraptor Year 380, December 8th, Adar Flam Spaceport, Admiral Kallini Ender's office..._

"Admiral Ender, sir."

"At ease, Valzack. Have a seat."

"Certainly, sir."

Being back at the spaceport orbiting Earth was quite a breeze for Raizex. After two days of hunting down an escaped alien terrorist, hitting proverbial dead ends along the way, it was nice to just settle down and try to clean his mind, but no, Admiral Ender just had to call him in for a briefing. While Vion already filed an official mission report that he so generously copied for Xivena to bring back to his homeworld, Admiral Ender kept on insisting that Raizex be present to give him an 'abridged' version of the report. Supposedly something in the report was incorrect?

"I am wondering if the mission report was faulty, sir, or if we had done something unpleasant." Raizex said.

"More like I am expecting to hear unpleasant things from your little groundside exercise, soldier." the admiral added calmly, shaking his head as he sat down behind his desk. Seated in front of the old Indoraptor, Raizex did his best to remain impassive even though he desired to just go back to his post and return to his normal duty.

"What do you wish to know, sir?"

"Everything."

Raizex thought the admiral merely wanted to keep tab on his psychological condition, but the admiral's gaze said otherwise; he wanted to know if anything from the mission back on Messana was out of ordinary. Much to his own surprise, or the lack thereof, Raizex soon envisioned himself back at where it all went to hell.

 _The young operative was there, standing with his compatriots in the gates leading to the Civilian Zone, watching a multitude of small explosions went off everywhere around him. He was ready to break into action but had no idea where to go first or what to do. The sounds of panicking screams and loud groans from the injured and the witnesses temporarily distracted him. Xivena and Rivea already moved closer toward the still-breathing victims, trying to get them to safety, while Vion ran up a flight of stairs nearby to try and get a clearer sight of the surrounding area._

 _Raizex mentally slapped himself for stalling. What am I doing back there? He asked to nobody as he approached a wounded Indoraptor under Rivea's assistance. Looking back for a moment, he could see the peacekeepers flooding into the blast zone to secure the area._

" _Are you alright, sir?!"_

" _I'm fine, soldier! I'll live. But I think you should check the pavilion over there! I think I saw a group of skulking figures walking towards the people gathering there."_

" _Go contact Hyperion, Raizex, I've got this covered." Rivea said._

 _The Crystalclaw Pavilion? That's the largest open area in the city, the closest public spot to the Civilian District, and one of the most supervised places too... But there were two blasts coming from that place as well. Come to think about it, Raizex pondered as he approached Vion, still scouting the blast zone with his sniper rifle, during the foregoing event three bombs went off but from different buildings, and yet two bombs exploded at the same time from inside the pavilion's fountain at the center. Some two dozen residents got wounded in the district's initial detonation, and yet only two or three people suffered from the effect of the fountain's blast. It could be seen as if the perpetrators wanted to create a smokescreen or a distraction in order to get away while the victims and authorities were in confusion, if Raizex viewed it that way. The three mystery people the wounded Indoraptor mentioned were..._

 _Before he could finish his line of thought, his radio buzzed, indicating someone needing to talk to him. But when he answered it, the voice was neither Rivea's nor Xivena's._

" _Raizex, babe, please answer me, over?!"_

" _I'm here, Lyra. What do you got?"_

" _I'm tapping into the Zone's security cameras right now, and I think I've tagged at least three individuals who are likely behind this attack!"_

 _The mention of the weird trio folks instantly got Raizex invested, "Okay, keep going. Who are they?!"_

" _Sylvons, or what I strongly believed to look like them," Lyra's slightly crackling voice from the radio became louder, "I've told you, babe, they were getting very suspicious around everyone ever since months ago, and now I think our doubts are correct all along. We'll need you to find and interrogate the trio before they got away!"_

" _Alright, keep monitoring them. I'll tell the others," Raizex momentarily excused himself from the call in order to inform his comrades. The city's peacekeepers were already congregating to evacuate the masses, giving Rivea and Xivena a chance to regroup with the others for a while. Walking around for a bit, they found the other two Indoraptors standing on an elevated platform, surveying the crime scene. As Raizex was busy explaining what he had gotten just minutes ago from Lyra, Vion suddenly shouted in anticipation, gaining his attention._

" _There!_ _Three figures fleeing to the west of the Pavilion!_ "

 _At his partner's prompt, Raizex strained his eyes to witness three individuals, unmistakably aliens, making a run in the direction of the city's hydroponic farms._

" _Double time, folks! Lyra, keep an eye on the sectors' security cameras! Xivena, alert the police now!_ " _Raizex ordered as his team broke into a sprint, running past the blast zone into the pavilion._

 _Seemingly detecting that their lives were in peril, the aliens in conspicuous suits began to run faster, doing their best to evade any obstacles in their way as the pursuing Indoraptors started to gain more ground on them. The chase took them to a small park just outside the pavilion where one of the aliens threw a smaller bomb which wrecked a motorcar, and he did it again as the soldiers pursued them across the Business District and the farmlands. People left and right hurriedly jumped out of the way at the sight of the fleeing suspects barging through the crowds and the chasing soldiers hot on their heels._

 _Apparently, the bomb-throwing Sylvon forgot that he expended all of his arsenal, causing him to slow down a little as he tried to pull out another bomb from his now-empty pouch. Raizex, fortunately, saw the alien losing his speed,_ " _Sniper, tackle him!_ "

 _Vion didn't need to be told twice, "I'm on it."_

 _And with a bang, one of the Sylvons fell, alive but incapacitated. Raizex motioned for Rivea to quickly apprehend the fallen criminal, while he and the remaining compatriot hunt down the two escaping aliens._

 _Right after they made a sharp turn into a fenced alleyway, they saw the two crooks in the process of climbing the blocking fence in the alley; one was already on top of it whereas the second one was halfway up. Without thinking further, Raizex raised his submachine gun and fired..._

"So the last one managed to climb the Zone's tall fence and slip away. But why did the other one failed?" Ender asked.

"We shot his leg, sir. Those two were already _this_ close to running away. It was either let them off or try to capture one," Raizex answered, gesturing with his claws how 'dire' the situation was.

"Hmpf, smart move," the admiral nodded in agreement. "What else happened?"

"This second captive attempted to shot himself in the head."

"Pardon?!" The admiral leaned closer, thinking he probably misheard the last part of the statement. Calmly, Raizex repeated his previous sentence, "The second assailant tried to commit suicide to evade us, sir. Luckily, we stopped him."

Realizing his brief outburst, Ender straightened his posture again, his expression reverted back to that of stoical and focused.

"Ah, very well. Continue."

And so the story unfolded again.

" _Surrender or die!" Raizex roared. Before him, the wounded Sylvon lay exhausted on the ground with no means of protecting his life, but in his eyes the signs of defiance in the face of imminent death. The sniper Vion stood on his left, having finished radioing Xivena to bring some security force to incarcerate the two terrorists. Now with a downed criminal under his mercy, Raizex decided to steadily but sternly question the alien. He got to know who the person was, and whether he was associated to any organization._

" _State your name and affiliation." Raizex began his interrogation._

" _Das vobl'in sivl ubretez!" was all the alien said. Both Indoraptors glanced at each other warily; it was either the translator software in their helmets didn't do its job properly or the alien did not speak in the Sylvon's standard lingua franca, Lavinian, as the species usually did._

" _Who or what gave you permission to carry out terrorism activity in our space? What is your goal?" Raizex tried again with more intimidation in his voice._

" _Das vobl'in sivl ubretez!" the Sylvon once again repeated the same phrase, eyes kept showing that remorseless glare. Frustrated, the soldier kicked the alien, causing him to cough and bend. "You either speak in Lavinian or in English, dammit! Or would you rather have your tongue cut?" although the roar in his voice was unintended, it was enough to discourage the terrorist from trying to clam up for any longer._

" _I will not tell anything! I will not tell anything!"_

" _Oh, okay. What do we do now, buddy?" Raizex asked with a sigh. Faintly, he could distinguish the sound of marching feet; the police would be there soon, and that's if they brought some of the Union's military personnel with them._

" _Bring him in, as per your girlfriend's request. If anybody can squeeze out info from a bad guy, it's the peacekeepers," Vion reminded him of Lyra's plea. As they stepped closer to the downed Sylvon, the alien unexpectedly unsheathed a gun from his suit. The two Indoraptors halted in shock as, instead of pointing the gun to either of them, the alien made a sign of wanting to shoot his own brain out._ " _Das vobl'in zesc ich gryoqech mich, lhorez! I won't let you arrest me, bastards! Screw you alien scum! We aren't letting your people grow stronger than us!_ "

 _And a gunshot was heard._

 _But it did not come from the alien's gun nor Raizex's. No, the shot came from Vion's sniper rifle, aimed at the alien's weapon in a brilliant attempt to keep the suspect alive for questioning. Now, with the terrorism completely disarmed, the swiftly forthcoming police could arrest him safely._

" _Not so fast, little guy._ "

" _Yeah, can't afford to have you off yourself now, can we?_ " _Raizex let slip a sardonic joke as Xivena and Rivea rejoined his team._

 _With a nod of approval, he spoke aloud to the peacekeepers as they moved closer, "Alright guys, tow him in. Let the police question him first, or beat the crap out of him if the damn alien's uncooperative._ " _Aside from the apparent tiredness in their faces, all of them agreed to accompany the security personnel as they towed the struggling Sylvon suspects back to the city..._

"That is all I can share, sir."

At the conclusion of the tale, Raizex stared at his commanding officer expecting some kind of praise or admonishment for anything and everything his squad had done to resolve the situation, but the admiral lingered in silence. The two of them kept on staring at each other; the admiral with his calm but calculating gaze, and the soldier with patient but attentive gaze.

Just as when Raizex wanted to break the stillness by asking a request to leave the room, Ender seemed to have sensed the young male's building-up distress and permitted his to return to his workstation, but with one counsel. Well, in truth Raizex couldn't really remember; was it an unassuming advice or a gentle warning? All he could get was the admiral's words were somewhere along the line of " _Be very careful when you travel amongst aliens from now on, son, as they might have painted you as a potential threat to their interests_."

Serenity filled the office as the young soldier exited the room. At the moment Admiral Ender turned on his computer, wanting to investigate a number of files Raizex privately sent him. Supposedly the files were a secret 'gift' from Overseer Arienne's security attaché. Not much was said about the 'gift', except an ominous statement about how the files contained sensitive matters regarding the Sylvon Council's military capabilities, including possible signs of developing biological weaponry, and size of the Council's territory. Hypothetically, the mollusks anticipated some kind of war against the Union, but from the introduction files the brooding admiral read for the next half an hour, it looked like the Council preferred proxy war of sort, possibly to keep poking at the Indoraptors until they slip up and reveal a soft spot for the aliens to pierce through.

If this was true, then he'd need to organize security plans with the other admirals and generals.

A threat to the Union, no doubt.

 **-x-x-x-x-x-**

 _Sylvon Year 2192 (Indoraptor Year 380), December 9th, Planet Yunduk (Sylvon Space), unspecified location..._

"Good morning, councilor. Your formal dress looks very lively today," the spymistress opened their private session with a playful remark. Her expression, regardless of the greeting, stayed smooth.

"Save it for later!" Councilor Astrax brushed aside her words, his facial tentacles curled tightly near his cheeks as he entered the secret office reserved for the two of them to convene in. "What do you have gathered from your agents so far? And remember, we need solid Intel on what the Indoraptors have behind their borders, not shifty data like last time."

"Relax, today we finally have real information."

The bright sunny weather and the woman's positive attitude did nothing to lift Astrax's mood, what with his inability to rest while waiting for the councilor's devious partner to collect information related to their alien rivals. Nevertheless, he refrained from making any unnecessary comments and concentrated his attention to the accumulation of Intel displayed on the spymistress' holographic screen.

"First, let's begin with the three border systems our agents tried to infiltrate," said the spymistress, highlighting three dots on her screen, which represented three star systems located at the outer edge of the Indoraptor Union's space territory. According to what her spies and mercenaries managed to discover, those systems were rich in minerals, namely titanium, platinum, silver, palladium, and iron. Further down the list were names of strange gas and liquid compositions harvested from gas giants and frozen planets, believed by the Union's top scientists to be terraforming materials that could either rise or lower a planet's climate and humidity. The spymistress' agents were unable to breach two systems before being immediately driven out by Union spaceships, but they were able to sneak past the defenses in the third system and stole a handful of mineral caches. "Of course, said caches were full of ordinary minerals, nothing more," the woman explained with a visible frown on her face.

"I assume this is all you got to share? Staging a fake pirate attack does not bring us any desirable effect. Maybe next time we can bribe a mercenary group or two to perform a real pirate raid on their stellar outposts."

"No. Perhaps we have failed twice, but the information we've retrieved is still valuable to some degree. There are still some left. Now pay attention."

Interested at what she wanted to show, the councilor examined the next bundle of information. On the word of the Sylvon agents sent to the Union's colony world titled Lemuria, there seemed to be quite a difference at how the populace was treated. Indoraptor colonists were given plenty of responsibilities, tasks that must be completed as a sign of loyalty to their government, and in return they enjoyed full rights as the Union's citizens; free education, higher living standards, etc. Agnaktor and Sylvon citizens, however, were prearranged with fewer duties to do, and as a result received much fewer civil liberties as residents of the colony planet. The Indoraptors were well policed in all planetary sectors, providing near-perfect safety for their people as a whole, with a few individuals among them even volunteering to be part of the peacekeeping force; the same couldn't be said with the alien citizens, whose living and work spaces were more prone to criminal activity despite attempts to curtail it. Population segregation appeared to be in full effect, the councilor surmised, as the colony map on the screen indicated the Indoraptors living in lavish but efficient architectures around the city center, followed by the Agnaktors who shared some practical spaces with the black lizards, and the close-knit groups of Sylvons living around the city's edges.

"What happened to your planetside agents? Have they returned?" the man queried, caressing his face tentacles.

"The Union's special forces captured two of them before condemning them into out-of-the-way death sentences. Lemuria's Overseer announced to her populace that our deceased agents had been branded as 'terrorists'," the councilor didn't need to look as his partner to know that she was becoming uncomfortable at their third defeat.

The bright sky was slowly getting cloudy as the councilor looked outside. Moving closer to the room's windows, Astrax reflected on the recent news the Council received some 24 hour ago.

Upon the revelation that Sylvon 'terrorists' attempted to provoke the Indoraptors into war, petition after petition were shared on the Union's internet forums, demanding the Council of Akantorin to do either of the three petitions forwarded by both Indoraptors and Agnaktors; issue an official apology to the victims of the attack on Lemuria, have the last escaping agent be publicly executed, or have their citizens currently living on Lemuria be deported as long as hostilities exist between them. So far, the members of the Council hadn't broadcasted their decision, all the while time was running out. Time before both the Union and the Republic declared war on the Council.

"Let us return to our discussion shall we, sir?"

"You are barely talking as of right now."

"It doesn't matter. There's still one more data cache we need to examine. Pay attention, councilor."

Redirecting his focus on the holograph screen, Councilor Astrax was presented with a list of spacecraft specifications and designs of the Union, accompanying them were comparisons against the Council's spaceship designs. The smallest design was titled _Raptor-Class_ , agile and protected by deflector shields, capable of inflicting continuous damage with their laser-based weaponry at the cost of forsaking tough armor on their hulls. The medium sized ships were split in two classes, the _Stygi-Class_ and the _Stego-Class_ , the former has decent armor and shielding with small but rapid-firing autocannons and mass driver cannons, whereas the latter prioritized in strong hull armor and high-powered laser weapons. The third type of ships were also divided into two, the _Rex-Class_ and the _Giga-Class_ , the differences being the former owned a more aggressive role in combat, supporting a vast array of kinetic and projectile arsenal, while the latter played the defensive role, holding ultraviolet laser weapons and more shields than the former. All of them, the spymistress explained, were being upgraded to support quicker sublight travel and more efficient interstellar journeys. As the spymistress noted in her occasional commentary, there was a significant amount of discrepancy between what the Sylvons THOUGHT the Indoraptors were capable of when it came to technological levels, and what the Indoraptors were ACTUALLY capable of in real life.

"I must say, I am both impressed and frightened at how accurate this Intel really is..."

"Are you?" The spymistress flared her tentacles, "This particular data, as far as I'm concerned, allowed quite a large amount of margin error, so unless I'm seeing miracles before my own eyes, the agents were not very thorough at gathering what we needed."

"No, they did no mistake at all," Councilor Astrax replied coldly. He turned to face the spymistress with a grim expression, "Say what you will about margin errors, but the aliens' technology and naval strength are not something we can take lightly. Our warships and... mercenary ships appeared to be left behind by 125 years when compared to the Union's warship. Your top spies never lie to you, and you know that! We either do these 'infiltration' missions correctly or we formulate other plans to try and curb the Union's expansions before they become too strong."

"What can I do, really?" The spymistress darkly smiled and held out her hands as if gesturing an _I-have-no-idea-what-to-do-anymore_ expression, "If you desire an open, bloody conflict with these lizards, then perhaps you should consult the other councilors. I bet you anything, they too are interested in claiming the Indoraptors' resources by force. I work best in spying businesses, Astrax, not in open warfare. I assure you, my spies will have the tech schematics covertly copied in four days, and then you can talk the other councilors into developing and installing them into our ships." With a cold grin the female twirled her face tentacles, eager to get back to work. The male Sylvon sighed loudly as he nodded in approval.

"Bah, fine. You better hope your suggestion really has merit in it. If not, be ready to be replaced by a new spymistress. As I said before, we do this right, or do other, more profitable missions!"

Councilor Astrax stomped his way out of the office hoping to be able to book meetings with certain military-inclined councilors. In his mind he desired a sure way to poke at the Indoraptor Union to exploit their weakness, all the while trying to avoid being caught in the process. What he did not realize, however, was that the spymistress staying behind in the office wasn't merely doing her assigned task; she was contacting her assassins in private to confer the best way to remove Astrax from power, once he actually succeeded in his objective and became too dominant.

 **-x-x-x-x-x-**

 _ **EXTRACTING CODEX...**_

 _ **AKANTORIN COUNCIL'S SHADOW LEAGUE**_

 _This particular branch of the Sylvon's regime is the actual governmental body of the aliens of Akantorin, comprised of the most powerful politicians among the species; so influential, in fact, they can push for agendas that the 'officially elected' councilors are not brave enough to perform._

 _The League formerly began as a small group of corporate businessmen with strong political clout during the dawn of the Sylvon's equivalent of the Renaissance era, where civil rights reared its head for the first time. The organization, founded of no more than three prominent conglomerates at the time, subtly manipulated the state Council in each nations to restrict the growth of these civil rights movement, all the while using double agents to infiltrate the civil rights groups with the aim of guiding them to make poor agendas that, in the end, got them easily crushed by pro-caste and slavery groups. Ever since then, the League's power grew steadily as more and more conglomerates joined the organization, even if their intentions were far from sympathetic to the League's cause._

 _From the Industrial age up until the Space Exploration age, the Shadow League is considered to be the true rulers of the molluscoid species, although they rarely appear to the public, if at all. The League preferred using officially-selected councilors to serve as their pawns, dealing with day-to-day matters while the real governors plotted every move behind the scenes. Granted, there is also a big chance of one member plotting the deaths of his fellow members just to gain greater power within the organization. The majority of the Sylvon public remained unaware of the truth behind their governmental system, but the most chilling fact is that nearly all of the masses don't care about it at all._

 _Below is a list of the Shadow League's current members._

 _Member 1 : Qyn'Lostur (age 88), specializes in public propaganda, brainwashing and slave monitoring._

 _Member 2 : Bin'Dolzul (age 73), specializes in expansionist programs in space, including first-contact protocols._

 _Member 3: Irs'Werdan (age 70), specializes in economy and corporate monopoly._

 _Member 4 : Luz'Daspan (age 81), specializes in information flow regulation._

 _Member 5 : Cri'Gromr (age 69), specializes in scientific R &D, including its application and commercialization._

 _Member 6 : Eyr'Aliveg (age 84), specializes in partisan division control._

 _Member 7 : Ars'Astrax (age 92), specializes in cutthroat politics and_ _ **DATA BASE CORRUPTED, UNABLE TO FIND PREVIOUS INPUT**_ _._ _ **PLEASE CONSULT NETWORK SERVER FOR MORE INFORMATION.**_


	10. Chapter 10

**Waiting for Something Big to Happen**

 _Indoraptor Year 380, December 12th, Adar Flam Spaceport..._

It was one day and a half after Raizex and co. returned to the spaceport from Lemuria. The uneventful second trip to the planet was meant as a cleanup mission alongside other ground teams, searching for more signs as to where the last surviving criminal from last time went. Raizex led his team to break into the locked storage rooms, following him were two teams; one team to examine whatever evidence the Sylvon terrorists left behind and one team to round and present all uncovered evidences before the peacekeepers.

Though an extensive investigation was carried out, none found any clue as to the terrorist's whereabouts, which was baffling. Only small stashes of hazardous, potentially inflammable, chemicals were found and confiscated, likely used in concocting the terrorists' bombs..

Raizex remembered the time when he spent hours upon hours of investigating the warehouse where the three culprits allegedly gathered in to plan their attack, "Odd, isn't it?"

"What's odd, Hyperion?"

"The fact that our target didn't do much to hide these stuffs."

Vion appeared to have noticed something out of place, Raizex thought, but Rivea already voiced his suspicion for him. "The suspect is no fool, Vion. If anything, he could be expecting us to busy ourselves with these," Rivea voiced his thought aloud.

"What do you mean, Vascon?"

"Well, Raizex, my idea is that the culprit left these behind as a distraction for us. We might be too preoccupied with trying to track down the original distributor of the harmful chemicals to actually care about apprehending the mystery guy," said the attentive Rivea. Both Vion and Raizex nodded glumly at the notion, but with only a small amount of proof in their hands, nothing was certain.

"Quite an unusual theory there... why don't we consult some of the higher ups, just to get some input on how to approach any possible missions in the future?"

"I agree, Hyperion."

"Let's book a meeting then."

Consequently the trio did request a private meeting with one of their superiors, just so that they could spew random theories, including the wildest of ideas. At first, they asked for a meeting with one Captain Zavien Farigon, or if said captain was unavailable, Lieutenant Karmen Larigea. What the trio did not expect, however, was for Admiral Kallini Ender to somehow intercept the message ( _How the hell did he knew what we're doing? Did his agents tipped him off?_ ) and offered his office as the meeting place. Raizex could only speculate the old admiral had been spying on him, again. Rivea, in an upbeat tone, suggested the others to just follow along so that they could play nice while uniting their thoughts.

The ensuing relaxed conversation, if it could be called relaxed in the loosest way possible, could be summarized in a handful of sentences; firstly, the admiral welcomed the three Indoraptors in a standard formal manner, only to warm up by the time the bumpy Raizex requested his go-ahead to speak freely. From then on, the three soldiers took turns in explain what they had done on Lemuria and what evidences had been collected. Understandably, Ender had been informed of that, but he allowed the trio to keep on talking. It was where Rivea, animatedly, offered some scenarios which he thought might happen sometime in the future, or was in motion; scenarios where the Sylvon's untrustworthy Council would challenge The Union to declare a series of long proxy wars, or a number of assassination plots to send the Union into bloody civil war. Vion, seeing how Rivea could talk for too long without remembering his place, habitually cut his partner's narration by elaborating the ideas into simple outlines. The serious admiral, Raizex noted only asked one or two questions from time to time, but gave no comment as if he was essentially familiar with the concepts Rivea forwarded.

At the end of the session, after what felt like three or four hours of exchange, Rivea finally sat down. Raizex glanced uncomfortably to the admiral, who, after minutes of contemplation, spoke "It is clear than you all wanted something."

"Yes sir." Raizex replied.

"What will it be?" Admiral Ender asked again.

"For the Union's Grand Fleet to take immediate action before another tragedy repeats itself. Or if the Fleet can't be seen as being too aggressive, arrange some errands that we can do without being bogged down by too much paperwork."

"So you desire a black ops mission?" Ender asked with restrained incredulity, "Well, I could pull a string or two, but even if I succeeded, you all have to wait until five months later, at the quickest."

When Vion inquired why, the admiral told that the Grand Fleet was currently bolstering up its power and ordering more ships be constructed to deal with the increase of unwelcomed activities on the border systems. The Agnaktor Republic, too, was conscripting the establishment of their own security fleets to defend the red lizard's interests, although they still needed the Union to share a little bit of minerals and ship designs to build their own military ships. Long story short, the Union would be too busy with fleet upgrading and mobilization. For Raizex and his comrades to provide assistance within accepted parameter and proper authorization, they'd have to wait until five months later, or risk doing a secret mission that could theoretically get them all killed or worse.

"Welp, I guess there's nothing more we could do." Vion said after they were excused from the admiral's office. "It's a shame. Let me know if the admiral wants to talk again, Valzack. He seems to enjoy your presence."

"A shame indeed. I'd be happy to volunteer myself into more action-based missions, though!" Rivea exclaimed from behind them, earning a brief glare from Raizex.

There was mostly basic schedules to follow, such as report making, storing their service equipment back, and dinner (if it could be called dinner, since day/night time was largely nonexistent on spaceports).

When all was said and done, the bored Raizex was left on his own as Vion offered to look after the station's system analysis until an hour later and Rivea already retreated to his sleeping bunk. Recalling that he had to clean up his tools, the lone Indoraptor strutted all the way to the equipment locker.

He never really liked assault rifles, Raizex thought as he opened his gun locker, that's why he left it in there. He found their weight and accuracy being poor compared to the likes of submachine guns and automatic pistols. Sure, modern assault rifles nowadays used heat cartridges, allowing the user to utilize them without the need to reload as the weapon cooled down instead, but Raizex believed the heat cartridge to be too reliant on having each shots count, and assault rifles in general rarely did maximum damage per shot before overheating. That privilege belonged to the sniper rifles instead, just like the one Vion had in his locker. It used heat cartridge too, but it did perform well on the field, sacrificing some of its speed in place for very high damage and precision. Even the young male secretly admired the gun and wished he could devote some training time to familiarize his muscles with the rifle. Having a shotgun as a secondary weapon worked quite well for Raizex too, due to him being a swift attacker-type of soldier, and the very shotgun he took out for regular maintenance just right now was the kind which used incendiary heat cartridge model. Expensive? Definitely. Deadly on short and medium range? Absolutely.

Rivea and him had two things in common; submachine guns and pistols. Both used ammunition cartridges rather than heat ones, but they performed well since the guns' ammo could be quickly removed and inserted, giving the users advantage in combat. Adding certain modifications such as aiming scopes and heavy barrels further increased the performance of the submachine guns and pistols. Also, keeping them sheathed was far easier than with bigger guns.

And lastly, Raizex's cherished platinum glaive. He hadn't had any more time to practice with it since his third training session. While he didn't want to brag about his new melee weapon in front of his compatriots, he sure hoped to find some good use for the weapon soon.

Satisfied with himself, the lone Indoraptor took out the glaive for another maintenance period once he's done with the shotgun.

 **-x-x-x-x-x-**

 _Indoraptor Year 380, December 18th, colony planet Shrike (Nabradia system), Northpoint Research Post..._

Raizex admitted, he wasn't sure what to think or feel when he's assigned on planetside duties. Sometimes it allowed him to get up close and personal to colony life; a chance to see how well the citizens of the Union fare while being so far away from Earth, and maybe he'd had a moment to pick up valuable experiences that might get him well in life. Other times, it bored him so much that he'd considered slacking off during duty hours. One could blame this on the multiple times Raizex got selected to participate in 'safekeeping' tasks; it wasn't like the young Indoraptor had a say in choosing his next assignment.

While it's not blatantly obvious, Raizex was said to randomly snooze off during duty hours, although he had since taking a little stimulant now and then to keep his mind focused. Some of his partners, Vion included, tend to find Raizex occasionally turning on his eraphone, but due to them also doing the same thing at any time nobody's observing, the habit went largely ignored,

Therefore, by the time he and a dozen other soldiers were chosen to assist in a research station's surveillance, the resentful lizard could do nothing but groan. Vion in particular seemed to notice Raizex's behavior a little too much.

"I might as well use my free time to do more useful things rather than standing around doing nothing."

"Such as?"

"Well, you know... read a beginner's manual on how to wield assault rifles and sniper rifles..."

"Yeah, last time I saw you _reading_ something, you and your girl Lyra were in passionate chatting time there, Valzack."

"Ow, haha. She was texting me about the newest situation on her colony. Can't have another terrorist attack happening again, can we?"

"Really? Pardon me for my skepticism, but I find it... way too observant for a boyfriend."

Aside from Vion's snarky remarks on his hatred toward surveillance tasks, Rivea probably was the more observant of the two, though he was kind enough to not report Raizex whenever he did slack off. Thankfully, Raizex remembered to bring his medicine along so that he won't doze off during duty hours.

And so, there he was, halfheartedly guarding the Northpoint research station by walking around the second floor's roofless walkway. He would either be keeping his sight on all available entrances while slouching a little on a wall or gazing to the vast plains in the distance, where a herd of colossal bug-like things wander peacefully. It was his fourth day since the arrival on Shrike's main landing port, and he was enjoying his stay on the research station little by little.

Yes, the first time he heard the mention of enormous creatures living on Shrike, he tried to dismiss it as the Union exporting the sauropods back home to the colony, or the planet has its own equivalent of the long-necked animals. He didn't expect to realize that the word 'titanic' was to be taken literally. As Vion pointed out, almost all of the Union's citizens were frequently mistaken when it came to these beasts, as in not believing the beasts to be as large as skyscrapers until they saw it with their own eyes. Raizex agreed, seeing the titans for the first time made him felt like a child who got to see real animals in zoos. That, and the first time seeing the lush, beautiful planet that was Shrike instantly boosted up his spirit, if only a bit.

"Surprising." Vion said back then, distracting Raizex from sightseeing some of the planet's herbivorous titans grazing on forest treetops for the first time. They were on one of the shuttles carrying soldiers from Adar Flam spaceport to Shrike's groundside port.

"Surprised to see me watching huge monsters living alongside our people, buddy?"

"Wrong one, Valzack, but from seeing you getting so worked up over a planetside duty. What did you say again about being bored-to-death whenever you do guarding jobs, again?"

"Psssh, as if you never see titans in real life, Hyperion." Raizex sneered, once again looking excitedly outside the shuttle windows.

"I know right? But to me, the planet's charm is slowly wearing off. I'm a colony kid, after all. This colony's kid."

"Wait, what? Really?! Are you bluffing?!"

"I won't be sitting here calmly if I weren't so used to seeing titans walking past our little town."

"Heh, good point," the bewildered soldier replied, returning to sightsee the titans once more. Raizex thought his mind was playing tricks on him or the sunlight reflected a false image, but he swore, in the faraway mountain range, he saw something immensely big crawling on its belly across the mountain peaks...

That was four days ago, but Raizex still felt like the conversation happened mere hours before. Right, keeping himself up-to-date with all types of information was not Raizex's style; he'd rather stay close to the mundane things in life, yet new discoveries were being made every day, every week, even every year. In one way or another, these new discoveries and inventions would be used to further the Union's goal in spreading out and domination, although once in a while the Union did share some of its research with the Agnaktors. Thanks to the latest mercenary activity in their territory borders, done by none other than the creepy mollusk people, the Union and the Republic were increasing their budget in scientific and military fields, and occasionally sharing Intel between one another.

Just ask Rivea; early this morning he came up during breakfast and told his two partners how the astronomers from Lemuria claimed to have identified signs of a recently-spacefaring species, some kind of grassland-roaming flightless avians not unlike the gallimimus and the dryosaurus back on Earth they said. Whoever this new species was, they apparently have made their first attempt at space exploration by sending manned spacecrafts at their neighboring planets within their home system. Rivea himself acknowledged his own lack of trusted source, but from the way the scientists at the base chatted among each other, the news could've been real after all. If it was indeed real, then plans ought to be drafted on how to deal with the new aliens, who may or may not pose a danger.

But it didn't stop there, oh no it didn't. Halfway to his designated patrolling spot, Raizex also overheard female scientists gossiping about how the Union was outlining drafts on large space station with artificial habitats. He intentionally stalled for a few second before leaving, long enough to hear sentences like 'orbital hydroponic farms' and 'population growth as we expand further'. This likely had something to do with the Indoraptors' expansionist agenda, though he'd bet his money on Vion and Rivea already hearing such gossips.

And as he once again shifted his sight on the grazing titanic insects in the distance, the young soldier pondered on the random discussion he heard sporadically each time a scientist or two passed by, the reason why he was not doing his job seriously; bio-electric implants. Yes, he heard that right. Somebody on the lower floors claimed, if somewhat controversially, that the huge insects over there held internal organs which discharged electricity, and by studying the effects of said organs on the creatures' body, the scientist (likely a biologist of sort) claimed that it's possible to create special cybernetic implants that allowed the host body to discharge electricity. From what Raizex could tell, the debates were still ongoing on how to build and plant the objects inside the test subject's body.

Oh well, another reason to keep him from going crazy in the damn place, if only at the expense of not carrying out his duty correctly.

If anybody ever noticed it, Raizex might as well be grounded.

 **-x-x-x-x-x-**

 _ **EXTRACTING SPECIES PROFILE : RAGNYR**_

 _Species Name : Ragnyr_

 _Scientific Name : Titanus mundus lacerta_

 _Classification : Arthropod / Reptilian hybrid (titanic organism)_

 _Homeworld : Shrike, Nabradia system_

 _Preferable Habitats : Saltwater swamp, kelp forest, and tropical forest_

 _Lifespan : ~500 years_

 _Length : ~355 meters_

 _Height : ~78 meters_

 _Weight : ~100 tons_

 _Diet : Omnivore (primarily herbivorous)_

 _Locomotion : Hexapedal_

 _General Customs : N/A_

 _Normal Attributes : Two small arms for grasping food, fully-evolved lungs and gills as respiratory organs, immensely thick scales and carapace, four pairs of double-pupil eyes_

 _Extraordinary Attributes : Ability to understand crude messages, benevolent nature towards lesser lifeforms, bio-electric organs as self-defense mechanism_

 _ **Overview :**_

 _Among the countless titans who roamed the vast seas and landmasses of the continental world Shrike, Ragnyr is perhaps one of the most docile gargantuan species thriving on it, if not the most benign species of all the titans._

 _The species is known for its insect-like body, possessing six pointy legs plus two small arms and metallic-colored carapace, making them almost similar in nature to beetles. However, reptilian features such as scaly underbelly, rigged tail, and lizard-like mouth structure have been found in all catalogued specimen (the mouths in question are more or less sauropod-like mouths filled with teeth of varying size and shape, as well as mandible-like structures on each sides). The creatures' head shape might be varied from specimen to specimen, with some having longer heads full of short spikes and others having short but wider heads, but all specimens are acknowledged to possess four pairs of eyes with twin pupils. The Ragnyr are plant-eaters, one of the few titanic species that essentially forage on the lush vegetation on Shrike, and can be certainly spotted feeding in or near the planet's rainforests, swamps, or even kelp forests just off the shorelines, although this isn't always the case as researchers witnessed the Ragnyr eating the carcass of other dead titans._

 _The massive creatures, gradually evolving over thousands of years, developed spectacular forms of defensive mechanisms. The first one is their near-impervious carapaces, supposedly able to withstand impacts from all sources and keep their innards unharmed. By collecting shredded parts of the Ragnyr's shell, scientists were able to discover how to construct tough armor suits for the Indoraptors to utilize, as well as the creation of what the Union R &D department referred to as 'plasteel armor' for spaceship hulls. The second defensive ability is revealed to be two pairs of special, electricity-discharging organs, located somewhere just behind the creature's massive twin hearts (the scientists weren't able to properly locate the organs for fear of angering the subjects if they poke them too much). These bio-electric organs could be channeled through the titan's mouth and pointed limbs, giving it the ability to protect itself from predators such as the snake-like titan Midasomir and the scorpion-like titan Zemora. The Union is currently studying the chance of replicating this latent power into their technology._

 _The Ragnyr's nature, astonishingly, is far from being aggressive. In a shocking turn of events, three or more individuals of the species have been noted to treat the colonists gently, even going so far as to allow the colony's researchers to climb on their backs and study them. The event was considered to be a good sign of the colony's future, as the titans are now shown to carry a form of crude ecosystem, or miniature gardens, on their backs wherever they go, which contain all forms of ground-fertilizing organisms useful in farming crops._

 _Moreover, since the serpentine, mountain-dwelling Midasomir is considered as the apex titanic predators on the planet, having another titanic species as allies saved the Indoraptors precious time and resources from having to create anti-monster guns._

 **-x-x-x-x-x-**

 _ **EXTRACTING SPECIES PROFILE : MIDASOMIR**_

 _Species Name : Midasomir_

 _Scientific Name : Titanus terrarum python_

 _Classification : Serpentine Reptilian (titanic organism)_

 _Homeworld : Shrike, Nabradia system_

 _Preferable Habitats : Mountain ranges and deep ocean_

 _Lifespan : ~700 years_

 _Length : ~500 meters_

 _Height : N/A_

 _Weight : ~220 tons_

 _Diet : Carnivore_

 _Locomotion : Hexapedal (in-name only)_

 _General Customs : N/A_

 _Normal Attributes : Six fully-developed legs to help traversing treacherous terrains, fully-evolved lungs and gills as respiratory organs, impenetrable scales, two pairs of eyes, neurotoxin venom, trident-like spikes on tail tip_

 _Extraordinary Attributes : Sonic roar capable of damaging electronic equipment, years-long hibernation, bio-electricity for offensive uses_

 _ **Overview :**_

 _Aside from a handful of long-range observations, not much is known regarding the great serpents which roam the vast mountains and deep seas of Shrike. The name 'Midasomir' is actually a twisted/shortened version of 'Midgardsommr', the name of a giant snake in one of the extinct human's ancient mythology._

 _The name pretty much befitted the long, scaly beasts. In almost all observations, the Midasomir is seen feasting on other titanic creatures, either alive or dead. The word feasting itself could be taken at face value or figuratively, as the serpents are indeed capable of both swallowing their victims full (if said victim is small enough to be eaten in a single bite) or twisting the victim's corpse into smaller bits before eating (if said victim is too large to swallow whole). The Midasomir's venom also plays an important factor in subduing prey; while it's not fully understood what type of toxin the Midasomir possesses, traces collected from their victim's uneaten parts indicated a form of powerful neurotoxin, so potent it can kill a normal creature by simply getting covered in a single drop of the venom. Later observations witnessed the great reptiles fighting against other titans whether for sustenance or nesting ground; one recorded event chronicled a colossal battle between a male Midasomir, a purple crocodile-like titan and an elephant-like titan with three trunks. Suffice to say, the serpentine titan triumphed at the end of the clash, sustaining quite a number of wounds that only slightly weakened it._

 _The serpent's preference in high altitude areas is one of the few reasons why the colonists on Shrike are forbidden to settle their residence on the mountains. All travels to mountainous regions are also heavily controlled to prevent detrimental events._

 _Despite having six clawed legs that they use to pass through the rugged terrains of the highlands, the Midasomir largely relies on slithering their long, spiked bodies to navigate their way. It is unknown if said legs are of any use, offensively or defensively. Similarly, the trident-like structures on the huge serpent's tail might as well be nothing but menacing display even though there is a possibility of them using said spiked tail as a weapon._

 _The Union' researchers found that young Midasomir tend to shed their skin at least twice before reaching adulthood, just like the snakes back on Earth. While the shredded scales themselves aren't exactly treasured, they provided interesting insight on the creature's defenses and an opportunity to synthesize durable material that mimics the scales' sturdiness. Strange minerals and crystals are also found embedded here and there on the scales, implying that some or all Midasomir regularly feed on underground minerals to fill their nutrient needs._


	11. Chapter 11

**An Imperium with Its Alien Neighbor**

 _Imperium Year 217_ _7_ _(Indoraptor Year 38_ _1_ _),_ _October_ _9th_ _,_ _Trappist-1 Frontier Outpost (Imperium Space)_ _..._

"Is this data valid, Reyes?"

"Damn right it is! Look, Grayson, I don't care if you want to call me a sensationalist little bastard. You either send the data right away..."

"Or what? You know the Imperium's top brass can't be bothered with would-be fake news!"

"Or they'll have our goddamned heads on silver platters if we do nothing! All Intel must be verified by the Imperium's information watchdogs before we're told of its validity!"

"Gentlemen, please calm down and explain what is happening!"

Ah yes, the joy of living on the frontline, being so far away from home that you'd be immensely hard-pressed to treasure every single bit of memoirs, whether in the form of trinkets you brought with you or gifts like special homemade food that the Imperium intermittently sent in a monthly basis. And that's what the two xenobiologists Dr. Aiden Grayson and Dr. Joe Reyes had to endure for the last five years, traveling from one outpost to another, analyzing star systems in the hopes of spotting a new home for Humanity.

Fate, it seemed, hardly relented when it gave the two researchers a hard life; Grayson had to abandon his children on Earth just so that his monthly income as a frontier explorer could be used to pay their school tuition, and Reyes had to move his wife and daughter to one of the Imperium's fledgling colony worlds in order to avoid having to leave them on the steadily-overcrowding Earth like Grayson did.

To give an image of what those two were facing at the moment, the simplified story would be; Drs. Reyes and Grayson were working in the frontier outpost like usual, examining the likelihood of the star system they were in to hold two habitable planets for the Imperium of Terra to claim. One second, everything looked normal and dull. The next second, alarm blared from Dr. Reyes' computer, indicating an unpredicted discovery. The two biologists scrambled to their workdesks, hoping to identify the phenomenon as quickly as possible. Just outside their office's door, Reyes could hear the loud footsteps of their coworkers approaching fast. Surely the other guys on the outpost would want to know what the hell was going on, with the alarms and all that.

"Look, guys, I'm analyzing the findings now and I really can't talk about anything." Dr. Reyes tried to drown out the cacophony of noises his coworkers made.

"Yes, yes. Why don't we just stay quiet for a while until we know for sure what this is all about?" Dr. Grayson impatiently added, his eyes never left his computer screen.

Strange, he thought, the signal indicated a groundside discovery on one of the planets, and every nerve in his brain told him that the signal was... organic, if he could describe it in Human concept. Closer investigation drew his buzzing mind to the fourth planet on the system, one that was definitely not bound into planetary tidal-locking, unlike the first three planets in front of it. From what Dr. Grayson could tell, this particular planet was most likely a type of arid planet, if not a desert-like planet, hot and dry but capable of supporting life in certain regions and altitude. He needed to find out why. Ten seconds passed, then thirty seconds, then a minute, and then five minutes of silence and occasional coughing from the lab boys, until eventually the results came out and the scientists, Reyes and Grayson included, gawked in awe.

The star system they were in, Trappist-1, was inhabited by a sapient intelligent lifeform. Aliens!

They found it!

They finally had a chance to encounter intelligent life on their own, right next to the Imperium's border!

Grayson knew, this moment would be forever immortalized in history books as one of the greatest scientific discoveries ever, far more than the invention of faster-than-light space travel.

"Alright everyone, get to your stations ASAP! I want all details on the aliens be made available in an hour from now. Go, go, go! " Someone amongst the crowd shouted. All of the researchers, upon the loud prompting, returned to their respective work stations in an ever-escalating uproar. The two scientists traded uneasy glances to one another; surely all sane mind would tell you that any and all news regarding possible first-contact with beings outside of Earth would be treated with extreme seriousness, Reyes mused elatedly. And God forgive you if you're not well educated in how Humans fear the prospect of alien invasion, Reyes later added in bitterness, thanks to ' _Hollywood-level education_ ' which severely affected the masses' way of thinking when faced with such an inscrutable future.

An hour and fifteen minutes later, a comprehensive file was outlined in a large holo-screen, detailing what the science team had studied for the time being. The sapient species name was Mildari, a race of cheetah-like aliens evolving on the dry, arid world of Zulkana, the name they assigned to the fourth planet in Trappist-1 system. Their society appeared to be a form of egalitarian and materialistic democracy, and their 'official' language sounded like a hoarse combination of Swedish, Bulgarian, and Vietnamese languages according to a number of scientists with mixed European/Asian ancestry. Still, the team was edging on the cautious side, as the feline aliens successfully launched quite a few satellites that would no doubt reveal the Human's existence on them given enough time. From there, it'd be a matter of time before the two species encounter each other, whether in a peaceful diplomacy, or in a violent demonstration of strength.

A ping was heard in the room, indicating the report was ready to be sent and certified by the top leaders of the Imperium.

Stealing glances around him, Grayson and Reyes could see the perturbed expressions on the faces of their coworkers. They weren't afraid of being accused of making a false report; they feared the possibility of their latest discovery being used as a justification for Humanity to suddenly went ballistic and stir up the fire of xenophobia against all sapient life in the cosmos. But the report had already been sent and all the team could do was to wait.

 **-x-x-x-x-x-**

 _Imperium Year 217_ _7_ _(Indoraptor Year 381_ _),_ _October_ _10th_ _,_ _Imperium Capital Building (Parallel Earth), General Patton's Office_ _..._

"Interesting."

"Anything else you'd like to add, sir?"

"Keep monitoring them. I want to know if these cat-people are a potential threat to us or not."

General Patton was at the Imperium's capital complex in the United States. His agenda at the day was roughly important; Commander Adam Ryder appointed a meeting with him to hand over a science team's Intel from Trappist-1 system chronicling their first-hand testament of a sapient, spacefaring civilization being found along the border of the Imperium Space.

A fascinating race, the general had to admit. Imagine a cheetah that walked on two legs, wielded tools, and constructed a working civilization that embraced materialism and social equality like the Mildari, and have said cheetah explore space. Lord Ashford has instructed the Imperium's best scientists to study the new species as indirectly as possible. They couldn't risk a contamination scenario on the aliens. The public was told in a discreet way what the pioneers living on the frontiers had found, and so far no more news was released.

Ever since sixty three years ago, when Humanity witnessed the discovery of space-borne creatures dubbed the 'Tiyanki', which journeyed the void in search of gas giants as feeding and nesting grounds, and the myriad of creatures thriving under the thick ice of several frozen planets, many have expressed their desire to meet intelligent aliens, though what could unfold next, nobody dared to predict.

The colonies weren't getting themselves up without direct intervention, Patton assumed bitterly as he stored away the Mildari files. All those off-world migration propagandas were kind of obsolete, if not outright useless in many ways, seeing how the uninspired masses barely moved their feet toward the waiting colony ships. As if Patton had to say it out loud in front of the Imperium's more prominent leaders, Humanity was facing extreme overcrowding issue right now, with energy crisis looming just behind it. But the other leaders seemingly turned a blind eye on that, wishing to simply play around with their domestic politics; Lord Ashford himself was a quite glaring example despite what Ryder previously told him. Everybody knew it even now, as of this year there were 10.5 billion Humans alive, over 400 million lived in the United States alone, facing various socio-economical hurdles, with only 15 percent of the total number living on the colonies. Well fuck, the general thought with even more resentment, while the three extrasolar colonies did get themselves somewhat organized, they still heavily relied on more resources as their populations were barely capable of standing on their own.

Let's see, Patton mused as he opened a file in his computer. The first colony was a desert planet, aptly named New Sahara, located in Alpha Centauri system. Rich in precious minerals, metals, and raw oil? Unquestionably yes. Arid plains too dry to serve as farmlands, even with the help of hydroponic buildings? Frighteningly correct. All those brave people who offered their lives and future to the advancement of the Imperium frequently had to deal with close encounters with starvation colony-wide, and the fact that Human digestive system wasn't exactly adaptable enough to consume the local flora and fauna only worsened the problem.

Next come Atlantis, a not-so-creative name for a lush and beautiful ocean planet which lay in the Kepler Beta system. Vast oceans covered 85 percent of the planet, whereas the largest continents were merely the size of Greenland; the rest of the landmasses were small islands and archipelagos like Indonesia. Thanks to the recent development on energy-collecting technologies, power generators were set up on the shorelines in the colony's chosen continent, which Patton observed to be similar in size to Australia. This colony provided large amounts of energy in many forms for the Imperium as a whole, but the surplus won't be there for long. Humanity grew bigger and bigger as time went by, and the resources provided by Atlantis won't last them forever. And then there's still the same old problem regarding Human's digestive incompatibility with the local flora and fauna...

The third colony and also the youngest was Hawking, a cold tundra world in the Capricorn system. The vast arable plains, as well as its abundance in highly-prized metals like platinum, palladium, and gold, was overshadowed by the fact that no more people were willing to volunteer themselves as pioneers on the understaffed, inexperienced colony. Population growth was fairly slow, and as a result resource gathering was delayed until unspecified time. From the accessible news the general could get a hold to, there was a small resurgence in colony migration, just so that the poor and the weak could make their fortune away from the overpopulated Earth.

Over fifty star systems ruled under the Imperium's unrelenting expansion, and outlandishly mankind hadn't yet developed a means of using resources and fuel in an efficient way. In fact, Humanity appeared to be too lazy when it came to recycling their own garbage and industrial waste!

The disillusioned general wondered if meeting aliens could help them solve all those crises. "Huh, as if we truly need aliens to fix all our mess," he growled. Such event would be the last thing mankind required should their survival be put on the line. Not sure why, but General Patton had a nagging, crawling sentiment that Humanity would swiftly turned hateful against all sapient life in the event aliens really showed up. The revelation about the Mildari alone was proof that Humans were a paranoid folks, at least when the Imperium let politics creep up on its shoulders.

No sooner than a minute after taking his eyes off the monitor screen, the door to his office abruptly opened. His head snapped up to see Commanders Adam Ryder and Julia Samson barging in, breathing heavily from making their way in as quickly as possible. Did something pressing take place inside the building? Patton narrowed his eyes as he stood up.

""Sir, we need you right now! You'd... best come with us to the meeting room!" Commander Samson spoke. The suspicious general detected an audible panic in her voice.

"What is it?" he queried.

Both Samson and Ryder shared a swift look on each other as the female commander continued "The Indoraptors, sir! We've received some kind of first-contact communication package. All present personnel are being ordered to man their station in case of the Indoraptors visiting Imperium space."

"What?!" Patton's eyes widened as his voice rose. Unbelievable, he thought as he walked around his desk, the mysterious reptiles Humanity had been studying from afar all these years now tried to speak with them? This was way too peculiar, it couldn't be true. Without further ado, the two commanders ushered their superior out of the office, into the hallway where dozens of people walked in a hurry, shouting orders and questions all at once as they did their best to get the situation under control. In a normal setting, this would be seen as a sign of tangled workplace, so something big must've occurred to incite such a panic. Navigating the suddenly bustling corridors of the Imperium's capital building, General Patton queried his hard-breathing personnel "What's the situation, now? Has anybody replied the communication attempt?"

"Not yet, sir. We just received the message two minutes ago. We've already run translation software on the contents of the message, but as it turns out, we didn't need to." Samson said out of the blue, catching the general off-guard.

"What are you talking about?"

It was Ryder's turn to explain, much to his partner's comfort "The message... was written in British English dialect, general. We don't know how or why, but the message was written in English. It's just that the Indoraptors sent along what we identified as a crude form of translation software of their own, so obviously they didn't expect other lifeforms to understand their... I mean, our shared language." They were getting closer to the meeting hall, where, judging from the sounds in the distance, hundreds of people were congregating in.

"It appears our top researchers weren't lying at all about the... parallel Earth theory, general. Shall we proceed?" Commander Julia said softly as the three officers eventually reached the hall's doors.

Hearing this, Patton shook his head, half amazed and half uncertain at the situation at their hands.

 **-x-x-x-x-x-**

 _Imperium Year 217_ _7_ _(Indoraptor Year 38_ _1_ _),_ _October_ _15th_ _,_ _Quebec, Canada (Parallel Earth)_ _..._

Sitting in the classroom listening to a teacher droning about the history of mankind's progression was one of many things Luke despised. Why bother going to school, the teenager wondered, kids these days had access to the internet, and all they needed to find, the internet could search for them.

Plus, the history teacher was a boring and outdated kind of person anyway, always getting his facts wrong or switched between actual history and the Imperium's political propaganda. Luke already noticed it from how the teacher lacked creativity in giving his lectures. It's no secret that more than ten students in school at any given classes recurrently ditched the class just so that they didn't have to suffer two hours of this unbelievably monotonous schedule at school.

The apathetic teenager glanced left and right to find his friends drifted off from like an hour ago. Many had slipped off their sneakers, confident that not one person would steal them.

In his effort to try and doze off like the others, not that the stupid teacher cared about it anyway, Luke let his mind wandered to one of the hottest issues being gossiped among his classmates. Specifically, the latest official declaration from the Imperium's leaders, who claimed to have unveiled the existence of other sapient civilization in space. One species was a cheetah-looking race from a savanna planet, and the other was a reptilian race, although the spokesperson who announced it was allegedly nervous when he talked about the second race. Rumors had it that the reptilians appeared to be dinosaurian in physical appearance, somewhere along the line of raptor-tyrannosaur-human-hybrid thingamajig that spooked even the best experts the Imperium employed.

Luke snorted, why afraid of some space dinosaurs and cheetah? Maybe some tough, gun-loving guys would just go up there and shoot holes in all those ETs, and then everybody got their happy ending together. That is, if the things in question were invaders like the ones in movies and video games.

From what his friends Matthew and Piers shared with the class, the cheetah aliens, the Mildari if they got the name right, appeared to have pleasant cultures. They were said to be rich in colorful traditions, practicing gender and economic equality, and greatly respecting their own equivalent of 'human rights'. Some like Maria and James were honestly eager to meet the aliens personally, while others such as Isabelle, Gary, and Jonah played the contemptuous role by pointing out that Humanity was far more innovative than the Mildari and as such, they shouldn't be hanging out with 'primitives'. Luke himself hadn't stated his personal opinion yet.

Luke was only barely aware that he became drowsy. The history teacher still kept on lecturing like a robot.

Slipping his sneakers off his feet, Luke laid his head on the table, ignoring the teacher's lecture on Humanity's technological evolution. As he stopped fighting the feeling of sleepiness and gently closed his eyes, a thought passed on his mind. A controversial, but largely unconfirmed tale spoke of how the space dinosaurs, the Indoraptors as the second ETs named themselves, originated from a parallel Earth, an 'other' Earth said to mirror theirs but with significant amount of differences, the most notable was the tale's uncanny account on how the 'other' Earth had its version of Humanity wiping themselves out centuries ago. As a result, the so-called Indoraptors rose to supremacy and gained sentience based on vaults and archives supposedly containing every piece of information on how the 'other' Humans lived, interacted, and shaped the world.

Adding even more spooks to the tale was the belief that the Indoraptors were not even 'natural' to begin with. Could they be a form of artificial intelligence community, Luke questioned himself, or maybe they were some kind of cloned extinct beasts who acted as a replacement to the long-gone 'parallel' Humans?

Maybe the Indoraptors themselves were the actual orchestrator of the 'other' Human's disappearance...

Unknown to everyone, the school bell rang very loudly, signaling the end of today's school session. The shrill ringing of the bell surprised the snoozing class so much that all students nearly jumped out of their chairs, including Luke. The teacher's announcement that there would be a short assignment was drown out by the chaotic noises in the class as students rushed to gather their belongings and stuffed them into hand baggage and backpacks as fast as possible. When they were done, the male and female students together walked out into the corridors, joining the crowds of other teenagers marching to the exit, concerned with their trivial lives more than their education.

Luke found himself finished the last; the boring history teacher already following the rest of his classmates outside. Not wanting to stay there any longer, Luke quickly fixed his clothes, zipped his backpack on, wore his beanie and rushed out of the class, hoping to catch up with his friends before going home. He briskly stopped midway across the empty corridor when he felt something weird on his feet. He slowed his walk and looked down...

Only to find his left foot covered by his sock alone.

Fuck, he thought. He must've abandoned his other sneaker in the class.

And so Luke ran back to his classroom to find his missing sneaker, swearing gaudily along the way.

Screw the aliens, he thought. No amount of alien discoveries could save him from his bad day.


	12. Chapter 12

**Moving the Players Forward**

 _Sylvon Year 2193 (Indoraptor Year 381), November 2nd, Sylvon Council Space, classified location..._

"It is NOT my fault, madam!" Nobec shouted defiantly.

"Yes it is."

"No, madam, it is not. I've done everything according to the organization's accepted parameters! We all agreed that the missions themselves hold no more than 25 percent success rate; disastrous undertakings are not the end of our brotherhood!" Nobec willed himself to go on relentless reasoning despite the long record of fiascoes in his hands, the mark of dishonor that his organization would be forced to bear for a long time. The person he answered to, the ever-so-enigmatic spymistress of Miralis organization, greatly disagreed with the male's alleged confession.

"Yes, I am aware of that. It is YOUR endless streak of failures that shames Miralis as a whole." The spymistress hissed in disappointment.

Stepping closer to the disgraced mercenary, the spymistress leaned close to the male's earhole and whispered "You have failed us. You are no longer useful to the Council and our species." as her facial tentacles whacked Nobec in the face. Shocked, dejected, the mercenary could only stare in disbelief at his superior's venomous assertion, knowing that soon his life would be decided by a single bullet from her bodyguard's gun.

"Do you wish to be reminded of your mistakes?"

Nobec looked at the spymistress as she sat back on her seat. Murmurs were heard amongst the watching onlookers, he noted.

While the mercenary himself almost lost count on how many unsuccessful tasks transpired under his command, the small audience standing near or behind the spymistress was all too aware of it. To begin with, the initial mission on Lemuria, meant to demoralize the Indoraptors as a whole, ended up in disarray when Nobec's comrades were captured alive, giving the brutish black lizards a means of anticipating the Council's efforts to undermine their society. The black campaigns that trailed shortly thereafter didn't produce any desirable effects as well. From there, the follow-up mission on Cognita, another one of the Union's colonies, was easily thwarted as Union warships ruthlessly chased Nobec's mercenary ships and almost blew them all up, had only some of the smaller ships didn't sacrificed themselves for the rest. The third and most recent task, intended to throw the Agnaktors into social anarchy instead, turned out to be meaningless when the red reptiles set up safeguards on their space stations and fledgling colonies after learning the bad luck befalling their alien neighbors. The mercenary ships under Nobec's command had no more than an hour before the red lizards were tipped off of their presence. And then the damned Union's Grand Fleet just had to come in and destroy them for the second time, at the most inconvenient of time to boot!

To further ruffle the Council's tentacles, the Human Imperium of Terra has been contacted by the Union, possibly because the Indoraptors were desperate enough to search allies in the event a war really broke out between the Council and the Union. Not to mention that both Indoraptors and Humans found newly-spacefaring aliens just outside their borders, with plans to welcome them into their folds under progress.

The Sylvons were all too familiar when it came to the quickest routes to breach the Human Imperium Space, but they too suspected the chance of them already being warned by the black lizards...

At times like this, the spymistress pondered whether she did the right thing, to keep pursuing her top-priority schemes when things got too rough for her to continue working.

"May I conclude this little charade, madam? We don't need him anymore."

The request came from the left of the female Sylvon.

"Yes, you may," the reply slipped in an instant.

The humiliated mercenary widened his eyes, breathing hard as he eventually realized the end of his usefulness, as a Sylvon in dark suit stepped forward, his gun pointed straight.

A loud bang echoed in the room, and Nobec's limp body fell, his eyes lifelessly stared to the people in front of him.

"Burn his body," the spymistress ordered in icy voice. Promptly, some of the spectators briskly grabbed the dead body and dragged it away whereas those who didn't move fast enough to secure the corpse slowly vacated the room. Foul mood was simply not the correct word to describe the female's emotion at the moment; she was both infuriated at the person's incompetence and troubled that the Council would catch wind of the organization's lack of meaningful progress. Only the mercenary's murderer stayed, as the spymistress gestured him to step nearer. The assassin in black gently bowed in reverence. "I deduce there will be some discussion concerning us, madam?"

"Concerning our future steps from here on," the female alien said coolly. Letting her anger fade away would be the best course of action, she decided.

The assassin said nothing as the spymistress rose from her seat the second time. "We are becoming too engrossed in all these espionage actions, Naja. It is... good that we have the incentive to stop and reflect on our latest engagements, lest we reveal our weaknesses too early," she confided in the male Sylvon.

Naja, the assassin, appeared uncomfortable at the sight of the spymistress showing her fragile side. "Madam, you usually brainstormed your plans with Councilor Astrax. Why share your insecurities with a lowly agent like me?" "Astrax is gradually losing his popularity in the political circle. He believed our goal of interstellar domination cannot be achieved unless we do get along with aliens, if we will only stab them in the back. His prime agenda is to make nice with the Indoraptors we've hassled all this time, so that he could pave his way up their ranks and gain complete control... except the notion is vulnerable to mass societal disruption and potential backfire," the spymistress explained, "we can't have our slaves stage another rebellion, like what happened earlier in our history."

"Besides, I've studied your dossier. You've done merely a small number of high-risk missions, and yet you've never botched your tasks, not even once. Amazing."

At her implied praise, Naja bowed in appreciation.

In reality, the spymistress spend little time reading all of the dossiers, having no personal attachment toward any on the spies. She required no boastful subordinate like the foolish Nobec and his small army of unapt mercenaries; she required someone with skills, loyalty, and in-depth knowledge of how Miralis and the Council worked in tandem. More importantly, she needed a person who's ready to betray the Council should its members went off track from the Sylvon's original goals.

"I could send you out on a classified duty right now, "the female Sylvon admitted thoughtfully, "but I'd rather have you provide support to our cyber hackers; they're beginning to understand the schematics of the Union's weaponry and warships." The assassin nodded anyway, knowing that he'd probably not contribute much on the task, although he had some worthwhile skills in network calibrating. No loyal subordinate wanted to displease the spymistress for her influence was far wider than the Council members.

"Look, I'll arrange a more suitable duty for you once we manage to create a new timetable, preferably without more failures this time. We'll have you fitted with appropriate armor and arsenal after we can mass-produce the Union's weapons, and most importantly after the clone soldiers are ready to serve in combat. We just have to bide our time until then."

"And what about Councilor Astrax?"

"As long as he serves the Council, we may allow him to perform his daily errands unhindered."

 **-x-x-x-x-x-**

 _Agnaktor Year 2219 (Indoraptor Year 381), November 2nd, planet Agnius, Executive's Office..._

"Tell me what truly occurred on the main plaza."

"All of it, Executive?"

"All of it. Please don't leave out any detail."

Once again the Agnaktor prime leader, Zyr, sat in her office, listening to one of her secretaries elaborating an unnerving situation from two weeks ago, the aptly named 'Slavery Campaign' by those who had their internet accounts riddled with jingoistic mails from Sylvon Space. These electronic mails spoke of how slavery was the finest way of life, how slavery determined who was the strongest of societies and who should stay at the bottom as something to be profited from. Either the Agnaktors joined them in this 'glorious path to mastery over nature', or suffer from the Sylvon's bigotry for all eternity, the campaign stated.

Naturally, the public flew into a rage and demanded the executive and her Governors close their borders from Sylvon immigrants, just like what the Indoraptor Union had done last year.

Even with the Indoraptors promising aid in the form of another species that had... special yet unsettling bond with them, Executive Zyr couldn't help but wonder at how long the mollusks and their obstructive Council would persist with this terror campaign.

"Shall I elaborate it from the disturbance two weeks prior or...?"

"No. Let's skip that part; I want to know how the hell the Sylvon bastards terrorized us via the mega-screens." the executive waved her hand dismissively. The secretary recognized the hand gesture a little too well; it meant his superior decided that all Intel secondarily related to the main state of affairs to be trivial and could be dealt with later. He might as well obeyed and do as Executive Zyr told.

"At the start of its appearance, the mega-screens in the plaza only had these advertisement inserts too small to be immediately noticeable by the public, but we all knew it came from Sylvon Space. You know, it resembles the internet campaign from two weeks ago." the secretary said. "A day later, propaganda-like commercials would come online every six hours on certain mega-screens, then-supposed to be glitches in the network system. They hadn't put it on top-priority list. The day after, the mega-screens blasted the so-named Slavery Campaigns in high volumes once every hour, forcing the internet caretakers to forcibly shut down all mega-screens on every plaza on Agnius. Cyberware personnel did an exhaustive sweep on the internet network, but found that all traces of the campaign's sender mysteriously erased. The public had been rendered intimidated by the events, and productivity has decreased by 23 percent." the Agnaktor concluded his narration. He handed over his portable computer for the executive to evaluate; a long list of disturbances caused by the Sylvons and complaints being posted as a response to those outrageous vandalisms. Further down the list were recommendations for Executive Zyr to reinforce the Agnaktor's connection with the Indoraptors.

"Is the pattern similar to the internet hacking two weeks ago?" Executive Zyr inquired, still reading the wealth of information in it.

"Almost similar, ma'am. The main difference is the spamming internet mails had no audio-visual media and indirectly insulted our people, while the propaganda videos on the mega-screens openly disrespected us." replied the unhappy secretary. For a minute the two of them shared a look of understanding.

"Curse the damned mollusks. Curse them all."

"My thoughts exactly." the secretary agreed solemnly, "We can't afford to stand alone in this."

The irritated Zyr returned the portable computer in silence, still unsure of the best strategy to deal with the network vandalism. Military wasn't their best forte and the Agnaktors were not prepared to deal with proxy war like this. Furthermore the Indoraptors were kind of busy facing their own share of these vandalisms to actually contribute to the Republic's safety as they promised before. Zyr was assured of the Republic's protection and prosperity when the Union allowed them to study various schematics of the Union's arsenal and warships, but so far research and development was slow, to put it mildly. Valuable minerals needed to build those warships were also in slight shortage; it's a blessing that the Union was more than willing to send the Agnaktors some surplus minerals, particularly the likes of iron, iridium, and palladium. But the boon won't last them for long.

The only way to survive through the coming storm was to do what their alien friends do; find more allies, find new aliens willing to band together and stand against slavery and discrimination. From the information she once read, the Union discovered an avian species ready to begin space colonization, and was drafting protocols to welcome the avians as equals. Lucky for them, it seemed; said new aliens were located at the Union's border far away from the Council's territory.

Will the Agnaktor Republic be as fortunate as them?

Only time will tell.

"Sir, would you kindly bring officer Xivena in? I am assured that he has more experience in cooperating with the Union to undermine the Sylvon's crusades." Zyr spoke as she shuffled through the paperwork on her table, "Also, tell the scientists of the _Crimson Blaze_ faction that I'll give them some funding to explore new star systems until twelve years later. Don't reveal them the reason behind this initiative." The secretary seemed hesitant for a second, though he ultimately complied and left the office to carry out the assignments.

Deep breaths, the female Agnaktor said in her mind, deep breaths. She now understood the pressure her alien ally must be facing these days and hot heads wouldn't deliver them to the best solution. She could deliver a public speech to raise the populace's morale, but talking in rousing emotion was easier said than done. Perhaps her personal aide might be able to shed his insight on the matter?

Maybe she could find solace in communicating with the Union's prime chief.

But that had to wait. First, the disillusioned executive must convene with the Governors and resolve the situation. Find out what could be done to help the public recover from the widespread anxiety.

 **-x-x-x-x-x-**

 _Indoraptor Year 381, November 28th, Deep Space Communications Satellite..._

 _ **(RETRIEVING CONVERSATION ARCHIVE...)**_

 _ **(ARCHIVE LOCATED, PLEASE WAIT...)**_

" _Lord Connor Ashford, thanks for calling. It's not often for people to contact me via private channel, let alone from the great Imperium itself."_

" _ **The pleasure is all yours, Union Prime Chief. Xen Alven, isn't it? Please pardon us should we get your name wrong**_ _."_

" _Certainly, my new friend."_

" _ **Also, if you don't mind, please ignore all accusations from my people regarding you using names such as 'Earth' and 'Sol system' as an elaborate hoax. Obviously, we never expected to suddenly, very suddenly, getting a greeting or two from a world mirroring our own, which we thought to be an error in stellar observations. Until now we have no idea whether we should call you a friend, a neighbor, or a rival**_ _._ _ **Preferably a distant neighbor, since we haven't interacted closely with each other.**_ _"_

" _I know the feel, Lord Ashford. We initially refused to believe it either, despite countless years and currencies poured into this socially-divisive research. When the real news got out, our scientific and military communities over here nearly demanded me to declare war on you unless I have solid proof that you, the parallel Humans, are worth being our future confidantes. It was a miracle that you remained composed and professional during the First-Contact days, therefore you have my eternal gratitude. I dare not thinking a possible war which might break between us..."_

" _ **Thank you for your kind words, Chief Alven**_ _._ _ **My people over her were also scared that you and the Indoraptors might possibly be the scourge of God or something like that. Thankfully the researchers got to calm the masses before anything unpleasant took place.**_ _"_

" _You're welcome, my Lord. By the way, this is no ordinary gossiping, I assume?"_

" _ **More often than not I find myself agonizing over whether or not I should try to initiate small talks. You know, to improve relationships?**_ _"_

" _I do appreciate the gesture, my Lord. But something tells me that... your voice tone beckoned a plea for help. Shall we talk in a more straightforward manner?"_

" _ **Yes, yes, a direct type of person, aren't you? No offense by the way**_ _."_

" _None taken."_

" _ **Our Defense Fleets currently were getting pretty disturbed by unidentified ships trespassing into our Space for days if not weeks. Can you at least share some info on this? I guarantee you, I'm not accusing you of anything bad. I'm aware that you are quite busy running the Union and all that, but..**_ _."_

" _It must be the works of the Council of Akantorin. Those two-legged cowardly mollusks, we are becoming annoyed by how common they harassed us lately. Have my science teams shared the research data with you, by the way?"_

" _ **Yes, they had. At first we assume them to be of no imminent danger to us and were content to let you deal with them at your leisure. But as of three days ago, the... Sylvons, or their spying corvettes as we assume at the moment, were flying in and out at a random interval. Sometimes we caught them surveying our colonies or mining stations, other times they were visibly scanning our starbases and patrolling fleets from afar. We still haven't figured out the true intentions behind these unregulated actions... Our admirals and generals have advised me to put more attention to security management, although I suppose asking the Union for help wouldn't hurt**_ _."_

" _But you fear the likelihood of proxy war? We over here do, Lord Ashford. We've been reinforcing the Grand Fleet in the event another terrorist attack occurs."_

" _ **Terrorist attack?**_ _"_

" _Our flagship colony, Lemuria, suffered from a series of mass bombings nearly a year after accepting Sylvon residents from the Council Space. Many died in the attack; dozens of other victims were badly wounded. The mollusks themselves barely even acknowledged their people's involvement in this. In the following weeks, pirates and mercenaries tried to enter our borders, although they were all repelled."_

" _ **I am sorry for your loss. If you need anything, you may contact the Imperium; we should be able to assist you in future relief effort if you so wishes.**_ _"_

" _For now I can only bring you warnings, my Lord. Strengthen your starships and your armies. The damn aliens will want to provoke your anger just for fun and profit."_

" _ **Got it**_ _."_

" _For the record, I suggest you to withhold giving the Sylvons any access to your stations or planets, but the Agnaktors might be excluded as long as you're fine having them around. I'll forward some useful Intel to your information specialists some twenty four hours from now, but make sure to have your specialists ready to data-mine it quickly; our chat right now could be hacked by the Council's spies and we can't afford to let them be profited from it."_

" _ **Very well, I'll keep that in mind. And Chief Alven?**_ _"_

" _Yes?"_

" _ **May God bless you**_ _."_

" _You too, Lord Ashford."_


	13. Chapter 13

**New Aliens on the Blocks**

 _Indoraptor Year 38_ _2_ _,_ _January 3rd_ _,_ _Shangri (Wuxing system),Capital Biology Lab_ _..._

"Arrogant bird-looking folks? Really?" Raizex asked as the trio entered an empty lounge, "Right, no baseless assumption first."

His companions nodded impassively, though deep down Raizex could feel their interest welling up at the public affirmation that a new civilization was found next to the Union Space. Ever since leaving Shrike a month ago, gossips related to new encounters on alien life turned into actual facts as an avian race titled Niven were contacted by Union researchers. The Prime Chief suggested them to open communication first, albeit he proposed the use of a series of signals which would stimulate the Niven to try and track down the sender and find out who did it... and why. When the new sapient species did just that, they responded with some misgivings, believing it to be an omen of extraterrestrial invasion.

"I'd be happy if these aliens are squids or frogs. Hell, maybe mushroom people would make good punching bags," Vion quipped.

"Keep dreaming, buddy. As if we need more creepy stuff in our lives." Rivea sarcastically reprimanded him.

As of now the trio was doing yet another security patrol on Shangri's main research institute. In spite of the absence of immediate, tangible hazard, Rivea suggested all of them to keep an eye and ear to the latest development, just to fill their mind-numbing days. Who knows, the Niven's abrasive nature was a sign of blatant racism, beckoning the Union to stay far away from them.

"Not sure why the governing Chiefs on Earth want to publish the First-Contact recording on the web. Bet it's likely to be motivational conferences or some kind," Rivea said in earnest, "except if the new aliens could provide us something beneficial in return." Closing the lounge's door after noticing the lack of visible disturbance, Raizex took the opportunity to scour the vicinity of any spying bugs, with Vion draping the window curtains and locking the door shut, just in case. Once all was deemed safe, the trio picked their seats and turned the lounge's television on. Right on time, Raizex thought amusingly, as the dialogue between the Union's chosen emissary and a 'Guildmaster' of the Niven's Cyran Compact was on air.

" _We own the rights to battle whoever we see as foes and secure our people's well-being, ey. But if you prove yourselves as good allies, we will honor you_. " said the tall, bulky Niven who's apparently the so-titled guildmaster.

" _Oh, you will want to fight. Not for your amusement, but for the continuation of our existence_ ," the emissary countered.

" _Why is that, ey?_ " The deeply-voiced reply came forth.

Raizex snickered at the alien's verbal tick.

" _We are in a struggle against an enemy at this time. One that seeks our subjugation. We could use your help in beating them back to where they came_ ," the emissary spoke calmly, but still projecting an aura of authority. It helped that the two were actually conversing through large holo-screens; should both of them conducted their talk in the same space at the same time, a bloody brawl might occur. With the Indoraptors hailing them from Earth, and the Nivens receiving the contact from their homeworld Cyris Prima, physical clashes could be significantly mitigated.

The Niven's side of the screen showed many people behind the guildmaster whispering in quite a disbelieving outlook. The Indoraptors behind the emissary were hissing too; Rivea noted how they suspected the avians to be as bad as the Sylvons, their current enemy if not much worse. " _Hoy, we are flattered that people from space ask us to bring our might into a battlefield and experience all its glory, but make no mistake, emissary. We too could try to beat the crap outta you if we find you unworthy_ ," the guildmaster warned in guttural voice, eliciting an accepting nod from the emissary. Raizex knew the Union was military-centered and so preferred semi-diplomatic tactic in First-Contact, but to see another supposedly militaristic race acting like templar knights at best and marauders at worst perplexed him.

" _Believe me when I say that our enemy is an ardent supporter of slavery. They fight us from the shadows, using scare tactics and proxy wars through bandits and soldier of fortune. The enemy, the Sylvons as we identify them, saw slavery as a form of evolution, a path to ensure their salvation. The Sylvons want my species as attack dogs and at least one other neighboring species as servants and test subjects for experiments. We find this deeply insulting to our Union_. _Also they committed violence within our borders and refused to apologize for it_." The emissary, excellently, kept his composure as he delivered the statement, bracing his self-confidence just as the guildmaster burst in ferocity.

" _Haaah, slavery you say? Scare tactics, and using space bandits too? DISHONOR! Dishonor on their ancestors! Dishonor on their traditions!_ " Behind him the gathering Nivens erupted in waves of fury at the mention of other aliens using oppression to selfishly sustain their own lives.

Both Raizex and Vion giggled at the guildmaster's dramatic proclamation.

The astounding assertion startled the Indoraptor side of the holo-screen as well, including the emissary, who thought they must've made a wrong impression before the Nivens. " _Uh, pardon me? What's the matter about them not challenging us Indoraptors directly? The Sylvon race is not a predatory species like us, and as we all know, non-predacious lifeforms rarely implements a straight conflict in their behavior_ ," he said in confusion.

" _Cowards, all of them! Sending out money-eyed suckers and amateurs to fight their battles for them! Taunting their opponents from far away, too! What people do this but cowards, eh?! Where are their finest troops or assassins then if they hate you so much, ey? We Nivens never fear the prospect of straightforward war, hey, and we despise any form of cowardice in warfare!_ " Raizex had no idea what to expect from such a bombastic proclamation, so did the rest of the Indoraptors.

The guildmaster quieted down as the audience behind him applauded his passionate speech. " _I'm not aware of that notion, but I do realize that it's this close for us Indoraptors to burn with fires of xenophobia at the end of the day. We have no idea how close we are to total war_." The emissary brought up his hands and gestured with his fingers a tiny gap; a representation of how close the Union was from a real genocide.

" _Good! Keep that fire burning, emissary! An opponent who taunts you from the shadows will not stop ever until you give into their desires!_ " The guildmaster praised, or so Raizex could perceive.

" _So you don't doubt my statement. I understand that what I share with you today is very sudden, if we could call it that, but..._ "

" _No we don't doubt you, hey. So you want our help in showing Sylvons what warfare is? Good, good, you'll find a proper ally ready at your service, emissary_." All who watched the Niven's declaration; be they the Prime Chief and his subordinates, the Overseers governing the colony planets, the generals and admirals of the Grand Fleet, and even Raizex and his comrades were pretty much shocked to have another alien race so willingly and nippily offer their service at those who requested it. Even more surprising was the sight of other Nivens nodding in agreement to the guildmaster's words.

" _Thank you very much; we greatly appreciate your willingness to aid the Union. What payment do you wish in return?_ " the emissary immediately broke out of the stupor. Surely the avians would ask a payment in the form of money, precious minerals or the like, he assumed.

How wrong he was; the guildmaster shook his head superficially, " _Nothing in particular. You respect our culture, and in return we'll respect your culture so we can tackle Sylvons together. No pointless bloodbath. Are we clear, ey?_ "

" _Yes we are, Niven Guildmaster. Yes we are_."

Well that was very refreshing and dramatic, Raizex thought as they cleaned up the lounge after the show was over. Turning off the television and returning things to where they were was quick even without Vion's help, and soon the trio were back to their patrolling duty. At the corner of his eyes the male Indoraptor could see this weird movement on Rivea's lips, as if the other Indoraptor was holding back laughter. Just as when Rivea claimed that he had to use the bathroom, Raizex let slip the verbal tick 'ey' after saying 'be careful', causing all three of them to snigger like crazy.

Not sure if what they just did, slacking off and watching TV on work hours, could land them some punishment from their superior, but then again, the research lab was half empty so nobody cared... ey?

 **-x-x-x-x-x-**

 _Imperium Year 217_ _8_ _(Indoraptor Year 38_ _2_ _),_ _January_ _7th_ _,_ _New Sahara (Imperium Space)_ _..._

Commander Julia Samson groaned in annoyance as she woke up in her private bunk on the colony planet's operations compound.

The poor woman was well aware of how their unconventional new ally beyond the Imperium Space has claimed to gain assistance in the form of a race of belligerent cassowary-like bird people, and has been urging the Humans to do the same. Seriously, how the hell did the black lizards do that? The thought sent her nasty headaches ever since days ago, and she hated it so much. Dammit, Samson thought, her paycheck won't get any increase no matter how many aliens the Imperium meet.

As she pulled herself up, she examined her morning schedules on her computer tablet. No urgent messages or calls, Samson realized when no new Intel appeared on her database. Putting the tablet down, the commander decided to get a shower first, and then dress up in standard uniform before looking for something to eat at the compound's cafeteria. Any updates must be put on hold until the unhappy woman had her satisfaction.

Getting over the first two morning routines took a little bit longer than she'd liked. Mostly because Samson had that horrid headache again, forcing her to stagger to the bathroom. As if her annoyance wasn't enough, someone had to _conveniently_ interrupt her walk out of the bunk by way of sending a mail marked as urgent on her tablet. A video to be exact.

Goddamn it, the woman cursed in her head.

Assuming that she could've been pranked, Samson decided to play the video and watch its early moments just to get a glimpse of the video's gist, and then click on the delete prompt.

" _The clans of Zulkana are immensely delighted to finally establish First-Contact with an intelligent space faring race, ambassador. You may refer to me as Cleyrasparnax, or Cleyra for short_." A feminine voice speaking in heavily accented English played from the video. In it, the commander saw a feline-like creature, most likely the Mildari everyone talked about recently, conversing with a Human man in a plain-looking meeting room. Around them were witnesses, both Humans and Mildari in lab coats or something like that. A notification at the corner of her tablet's screen identified the Mildari's government as a Stellar Assembly.

So, the Imperium has initiated First-Contact with their closest neighbor.

" _Please call me Jackson, madam Cleyra. I am authorized to greet you on behalf of our interstellar empire; the Imperium of Terra thanks you for your enthusiasm to open diplomatic channels with us. I hope this historical occasion brings prosperity to all of us_." Ah, Brandon Jean-Luc Jackson, one of those pro-xenophile advocates as Samson recalled him. A vocal activist of Human-alien cooperation, Jackson had been promoting his belief that Humans did need aliens badly, if only to stop mankind from being so wasteful and self-centered for the good of the whole species. It's no wonder to see him being chosen to represent the positive side of Humanity.

" _May the spirits of the cosmos grant you fortune as well, Ambassador Jackson_."

" _Amen to that_."

Samson wryly smiled; she nearly forgot how Jackson was a religious figure, despite the Imperium's secularist disposition. " _Now, ambassador, may we learn a little more about your social strata? We were informed through data caches sent by your language translators who used... English, is that the name of your language? Yes, we've read the data about what you Humans are and how you live your daily lives, but is it possible for egalitarian and authoritarian philosophies to coexist at the same time, inside the same government as well?_ " The alien, Cleyra, began asking her question.

" _To answer your question, Humanity's centralized empire originally came from a series of conflicts among nation-states with differing political ideology and values. The latest planet-wide conflict, the third of its kind, nearly took one third of our population with it. Fearing that the end of mankind was near, we had no choice but to unite under a single banner, all in our desperation to stall the doomsday. And so the Imperium was born, by conjoining the best traits of many philosophical customs while abandoning the negative ones, such as liberalism's Human rights and freedom combined with collectivism's social welfare and guardianship_."

Hmpf, the commander didn't have to be reminded of that one war's controversy. One side argued that it was certainly the third world war, while another more skeptical faction claimed that it was no different than the armed conflicts which happened annually for decades.

" _So your species were close to extinction?_ " Cleyra focused her eyesight in curiosity.

" _Not very close, but the idea is there_." the ambassador shook his head in denial.

" _We offer our condolences, ambassador_ ," Cleyra said sympathetically, " _after the invention of machinery, the Mildari were tethering on the brink of societal collapse_."

At the moment, Samson lost her appetite as she indulged herself in the recorded discussion. She could note Jackson's uncertainty at the Mildari's confession, " _How so?_ "

" _We used to be apex carnivores on our homeworld. Once we got accustomed to industrialization, our diet shifted gradually to omnivorous, and the lesser meat-eating animals suddenly became deadly threat to our continued existence_." Ah, so the Mildari were just like the Indoraptors, the woman noted. But unlike the mutant lizards who harnessed their wild instinct to a certain degree, the cheetah people chose to forgo their wild instinct in favor of technological advancement.

" _So you fell from your apex position, is that correct, madam Cleyra?_ " clarified the ambassador.

" _True. Our ancestors had to rediscover how to fight, how to be hunters once again. Mind you, ambassador; several species of carnivores on Zulkana by some unknown means evolved to be large and robust enough to tank shots from high-caliber guns_. _We either start fighting back or risk being reduced to cave-dwelling animals._ " At the female Mildari's gesture, a few other Mildari turned a projector on, showcasing the evolution of primitive Mildari until they became what they were now. Another set of images revealed what Samson perceived to be carnivorous species from the feline's home planet, with several of them being almost similar to prehistoric creatures which came before the dinosaurs.

" _Truly remarkable_."

The mood of the discussion progressively shifted into discomfort as Ambassador Jackson tried to change the subject, " _Now, I'm very sorry if the following topic sounds startling for the Mildari, but I believe... no, Humanity believes that you would be an important asset in securing our future. A future free from suppression_."

" _What suppression are you talking about?_ " Cleyra moved uncomfortably in her seat. The commander suspected that Cleyra sensed the ambassador's anxiety.

" _The Imperium has been... put between two equally-hard choices. On one hand we've established contact with a species which might have a special connection to mankind as a whole. On the other hand, a molluscoid species has silently declared their xenophobic intention against Humanity, with plans on slavery, espionage, and piracy approaching our doorstep_."

Not sure if the statement produced the intended effect or not, but judging from the Mildari audience's unraveled expressions, Samson assumed the felines to be quite uncomfortable at the notion Jackson forwarded. " _Spirits, another alien race desired your subjugation?_ " Cleyra asked in trepidation, followed shortly by the ambassador's grim nodding.

" _Correct, madam Cleyra. There are two reptilian species with benign attitude toward the Imperium, and they too are suffering from what they coined as proxy wars against the mollusks. They are known as the Indoraptor Union and the Agnaktor Republic, and both had pooled their experiences with us. Upon learning the correspondences between their struggles and the recent events we had in hand, we might as well try to recruit allies in driving the mollusks' intimidation away_." Minutes went by as Ambassador Jackson explained what the Imperium has studied so far in terms of the Sylvon Council's extortions and all attempt to undermine them, but Commander Samson knew better. He shouldn't have broken out the news so quickly, lest the Mildari's Stellar Assembly chose to instead destroy their spacefaring technology to stay hidden, depraving the Imperium of a potential ally.

Much to her marvel, however, was the Mildari's vow to help as much as they could, although the Imperium's delegations were a little saddened by Cleyra's testimony that they might not be able to assist in military-related sectors. In return, the Mildari requested an open access to Human-owned territories since they were so eager to learn everything there was to know about mankind.

The video ended soon after Jackson and Cleyra shook hands as a symbol of mutual coexistence.

Samson sighed as she recognized the importance in making sure the Mildari feels welcomed by Humanity. No idea whether letting them into Imperium Space would be well-received or not, but their Space was bordering on the Mildari Assembly's rightful Space, and regardless of what the masses might think about their government, the Imperium was not a horde of xenophobic bastards. A sinister adversary was antagonizing them from the dark, and turning aid away could be mankind's greatest mistake.

The woman wondered if the Indoraptors were having the same dilemma. If they do, it'll probably strengthen their relationship.

 **-x-x-x-x-x-**

 _ **EXTRACTING SPECIES PROFILE : MILDARI**_

 _Species Name : Mildari_

 _Scientific Name : Felis pardus campus_

 _Classification : Feline / Mammalian_

 _Homeworld : Zulkana, Trappist system_

 _Preferable Habitats : Savanna and arid_

 _Lifespan : ~90 years._

 _Length : 2.75 meters_

 _Height : ~1.85 meters (bipedal stance)_

 _Weight : 35 kilograms_

 _Diet : Principally carnivore (not predatory)_

 _Locomotion : Facultative biped_

 _General Customs : Egalitarian and materialistic_

 _Normal Attributes : Two forward-facing eyes, retractable claws on fingers and toes, fleet-footed, communal, intellectually talented._

 _Extraordinary Attributes : Night vision, sensitive ears, keen interest in machinery and computation._

 _ **Overview :**_

 _The Mildari, also referred to as the 'Cheetah People' by the Imperium of Terra, evolved on the dry, warm planet of Zulkana as a former apex predator species. Fast, agile, and resilient, the Mildari roamed the vast continents of their planet with the intent of securing game trails full of prey and breeding grounds. This eventually resulted in their species evolving multiple subspecies for tens of thousands of years, when shifting tectonic plates split continents apart, separating packs and families._

 _Sometimes to express their current emotion by visual means, the felines used their eye pupils to shine different colors depending on what emotion they felt at the time; bright pink when angry, icy blue when calm, yellow when happy, and purple when curious or apprehensive._

 _Upon gaining self-awareness and subsequently sapience, the Mildari slowly but steadily lost their apex predator status as hunting-gathering way of life was overshadowed by the rise of agriculture and tools manufacturing. In the absence of a top-level meat eater, other carnivorous animals rose to supremacy, compelling the feline species to re-learn how to hunt and fight to protect their young. Early in their history, their weaponry consisted of no more than simple spears and stone hammers, and their knowledge was fairly limited to perceptions such as single-digit numbers, primitive hieroglyphs, and simple wooden buildings. Transportation had yet to be invented, not that the Mildari wanted it, as the felines were already a nomadic species. It was not until Year 349 in their calendar customary that a group of predominantly intelligent Mildari designed and built the very first form of carriage, which is pulled by their equivalent of horses._

 _Not long after that invention (Year 353 - 802), the species advanced very quickly in engineering, metallurgy, botany, and weapons crafting, giving the species an opportunity to regain their status as the apex life on Zulkana. New languages and writing methods were practiced and went on to grow into the origin of organizational professions._

 _But it was the discovery of sulfur and gunpowder that led them into conflicts._

 _There were two civil wars among the species which mirrored the World Wars on Earth; the Voyage Wars (Year 800 - 884) which gave way into an era of Colonialism and Capitalism, and the Battle of Dacture (Year 950 - 1123), when two nation superpowers displayed menacing plays on political powers, dragging many smaller nations into a bloody conflict._

 _Fate, it seemed, showed the Mildari a better way of life beyond wars and rivalry. The development of space flight, followed shortly by the discovery of non-sapient life on a planet neighboring Zulkana somehow united the felines, providing them an insight of how life could exist outside their own world. The species, formerly divided by ideologies and constitutional systems, became one under the newly-declared Assembly, determined to create a utopian future for the rest of the Mildari. From then on, their lives became greatly improved as social equality made its place in species-wide commandment and futurism-materialism outlasted the waning traditionalist views among them. They believed that only by embracing their people as friends, not enemies or rivals, can the Mildari move forward as a whole._

 _As of this date (Year 1598), a number of space travel has been performed to survey the other planets orbiting the Trappist system._

 **-x-x-x-x-x-**

 _ **EXTRACTING SPECIES PROFILE : NIVEN**_

 _Species Name : Niven_

 _Scientific Name : Avis struthio praelior_

 _Classification : Avian_

 _Homeworld : Cyris Prima, Cyran system_

 _Preferable Habitats : Savanna, arid, and tundra_

 _Lifespan : 75 - 85 years._

 _Length : ~2.5 meters_

 _Height : ~2 meters_

 _Weight : ~45 kilograms_

 _Diet : Omnivore (primarily plant-eating)_

 _Locomotion : Bipedal_

 _General Customs : Militaristic and materialistic_

 _Normal Attributes : Two forward-facing eyes, Long arms and legs to assist mobility and object manipulation, high stamina and durability, long neck supporting an oval-shaped head._

 _Extraordinary Attributes : Dexterous fingers, propensity in rocketry and physical science._

 _ **Overview :**_

 _As tough travelers and fighters on the Africa-like planet of Cyris Prima, the Niven were built like cassowary birds on Earth, except larger and more ill-tempered._

 _While the Nivens are not so different from the Indoraptors, as in having dexterous fingers to serve as manipulators, placing high emphasis on military prowess, sharing avian posture with the reptilians and preferring open plains rather than rocky terrains or secluded areas, the avians' species-wide customs can be considered pragmatic compared to their more reptilian counterpart._

 _For starters, the Nivens' secularist view of the cosmos give the impression that they are influenced to see spiritualistic belief as outdated or primitive. Their capitalism may also be seen as an open support towards slavery and racial prejudice. both are not necessarily correct, however; the species as a whole had spurned the Darwinian traditions ever since three and a half century in their calendar (starting from Year 1776), because slavery and intolerance are no longer seen as praiseworthy to the ones propagating it. Nevertheless, the avian people put a large number of faith in what they described as 'honorable warrior culture'. In it, only those who possess impressive military might and combat prowess receives the Niven's respect and veneration._

 _The avian's Stone Age equivalent was eerily similar to the Agnaktors', in the sense that ancient Nivens were substantially tough and capable of doing plenty of physically-demanding tasks that their modern counterpart couldn't. Their Medieval and Renaissance Ages, spanning from Year 1307 until 1788, on the other hand, bears some peculiar comparisons to that of the Humans, as in having imperialistic kingdoms before they practiced dictatorship, soldiers in shining armor riding beasts of burden into combat, and the rise of modern technology formerly accused of being 'witchcraft' in the making._

 _Year 1829 was when the age of progress and exploration ended, for three strong nations, governed by three polarizing dictators, rose to power and began laying waste to many places, all in the pursuit of absolute dominion over the dry, warm planet of Cyris Prima._

 _In Year 2005, only one dictator survived the Great War of Cyris Prima. He made it alive by the virtue of being the last one alive, whereas the two other dictators perished thanks to the lack of knowledge to fight through proxy wars, which he did impeccably. Upon the Niven dictator's death by illness and cremation in Year 2018, the military-minded avians ultimately stopped spreading hostile crusades in order to focus their effort in increasing their scientific progress, creating tools which would prove useful later in their history like radios, computers, mass transportations, and space rockets. The surge of funding being diverted to research and development saw the emergence of a Cold War-like period when factions not united to the dictator's nation, then declared as the strongest nation on the planet, began their own space race in the hopes of gaining supporters and political clout._

 _It is now Year 2082, and the Niven are united under the banner of the 'Compact of Cyran'. Soon they will be ready to expand their interest into the cosmos._


	14. Chapter 14

**Bred for War**

 _Sylvon Year 2194 (Indoraptor Year 382), March 3rd, Sylvon Council Space, colony planet Tor-Parmak..._

Such a weird weather on an otherwise normal day, the spymistress mused as she boarded her expensive, private space vessel. On any other day, she would trail her gleaming eyes on her computer or data pads to pass the time, being already familiar with the dull, grey skies and the thin layers of snow saturating most of the Council's colony worlds. Therefore by the time her spaceship entered the atmosphere of the colony planet Tor-Parmak after nine days of travel from Akantorin, she couldn't help but indulge herself in sky-gazing, examining the unusual rain which soaked the cities of the colony while the sky was sunlit.

Ah, the perks of living on a multi-biome planet. As the spymistress acknowledged, the planet was divided into two major biomes; tropical forests and swamps dotting the equatorial line, and frozen wildernesses with oxygen-nitrogen atmosphere on anywhere far from it. Just good enough for the Sylvons to settle in.

"ETA to colony port 5 minutes."

The ship pilot's voice over the intercom helped the spymistress regained her focus. Right, she was supposed to be assisting Councilor Astrax on his unpublicized visit to the colony. To reiterate the councilor's words, he was planning to unveil one of the Council's closely-guarded secrets, one which went back to the period when protests against slavery were common. It would be more than enough to help turn the tide of war should the Council becomes endangered in any way.

As the ship prepared to land on its destination, the Spymistress glanced one last time outside the window as she moved smoothly to collect her belongings. Her species' favored form of architecture seemed more sparkling and flamboyant in terms of design compared to the Indoraptors, whose buildings gave the impression of being sharp-edged but glossy and curvy according to the images she saw in many websites. The Humans and Agnaktors projected their structures in a blocky and compact form, but still lively enough to have some semblance of breathing society in them. The Sylvons pride themselves in providing what they considered the best mass-transportation methods a civilization could hope for. The spymistress knew this, as the mollusks tended to prioritize building terminals and railways for their equivalent of buses and electric train carriages. And a train was exactly what she would ride today; Councilor Astrax generously purchased her an express, two-way boarding pass for her sojourn on the colony.

Maybe that was just his way of getting straight to business, she thought.

Stepping out of the ship, the female Sylvon and her bodyguards continue straight to the decontamination post without a hassle. The rest of the paperwork registration went as swiftly.

The councilor waited for her just outside the colony port, showing his currently habitual expression of discomfort. The spymistress recognized it; the disgruntled male wasn't unhappy with her presence or his itinerary today, he was bearing the sheer magnitude of confidentiality involved in today's agenda, and the councilor was sworn to never let the covert project be publicized.

They both know how much investment was poured into this.

"You're here. Good timing, by the way. Shall we continue?"

"Sure."

Astrax was definitely not in the mood to prolong conversation, not while his task was confidential in terms of species-wide security.

Following the male Sylvon out of the port, the Spymistress was led straight into a terminal where an electric train carriage was ready to carry her into whatever destination awaited them. People everywhere walked in and out of the terminal; some in glitzy robes and togas, others in simple uniforms, all moved without batting an eye to her. Blending in between them would prove to be convenient, the female Sylvon contemplated vividly as she and her escorts made their way to the train.

The enigmatic woman wouldn't mind having a separate train section be reserved for herself, rather than sitting next to ignorant commoners bustling about in their own deeds. It saved her some peace and quiet, no need to be self-conscious of what she wore or where she stared at. Some instrumental music would be good too, if only to lull her into sleep as the train snaked seamlessly across the rain-soaked city.

But as Astrax dejectedly said, pretending to be one among the common folk was the best plan for today.

"Madam. I haven't given you the details on the compound, have I?"

The male alien announced his presence with a stiff question. "No, you have not. What facility are we talking about? Is it the base we've had since centuries ago?" the spymistress questioned back, wondering if she spoke too loud and anybody hearing her. Stepping close to the female, Councilor Astrax spoke in low tone, just clear enough for the spymistress to catch.

"Correct. The base is located beneath a Council-owned bank; you'll know what bank it is when we arrive on the destination. Back during its construction, the former Miralis leader wanted to expand the compound further away from the city, but alas, the builders couldn't finish the base in time before other buildings and towers surrounded it. So they expanded the base underground, not too far from some precious mineral deposits thankfully. The facility is divided into roughly eight sections, with four aimed explicitly for conducting tests and a fifth being delegated into training grounds." The spymistress nodded lightly at the information, all the while keeping an eye on the other passengers.

"Will it be safe from natural disasters, orbital bombardment or other hazards?"

"There are no known natural disturbance in this region, madam. As for invasion attempts, the base is said to be deep enough to stave off orbital bombardment for months. Security devices and automated guns are installed in many hidden spots to deter enemy soldiers. It's safe to assume that the facility is highly defended against all threats." The councilor was rather tentative with his own statement, but as long as the spymistress was sated, he could push the uncertainty out of his mind.

The train speeded past a pair of glamorous apartment towers, followed by a decorative vista where rich Sylvons would come and take a break from their daily activities. Councilor Astrax was attentive of how they'd soon reach the destination; some ten to twelve minutes until the next train station and subsequently the mystery bank was in view. They better get ready to depart as the vehicle slowed down progressively.

When the train finally did stop at the station, only the councilor, the spymistress, and her bodyguards departed it, and even then not all of her escorts continued the journey; a few of them were silently mixing in the crowd to scout and secure her way back.

Making their way out of the station, the spymistress smiled thinly as she realized why Councilor Astrax said she'd know which bank she must enter to access the clandestine compound; the mystery bank was located right in front of her, just across the street! Glossy, imposing, the bank stood in contrast to the other dull-colored construction near it, as if innocently marking itself as a classified hideout.

Had only the street was busy, the female Sylvon would've gazed in appreciation at how mundane yet effective the masquerade was. People walked back and forth ahead of it and never gave the building a second look at all.

No sane mind would try to find a top-secret facility underneath a simple city bank, that's why!

"Let's move, madam. We can't be here all day."

Rain still persisted on washing the surreal city, although it had since lessened into a light drizzle, more than enough to let the public carry on their lives. It's a shame the spymistress did not stop to see how the sun shone a bit brighter than before, but she was a busy woman, and so had no time to marvel at the beauty of a tropical world.

Inwardly, the spymistress had to thank the councilor for having to deal with all the bureaucratic maze protecting this place from unwanted visitors. Identity confirmation, physical scanning by the use of security equipment and paperwork inspections, all of those went slickly thanks to Astrax's vast connections, even though the spymistress suspected the likelihood of the councilor in question bribing his way prior to this visitation. There were some instances of the bank's employees eyeing her with a mix of inquisitiveness and fear. Even she herself had no idea whether the employees recognized who she really was, or simply due to curiosity.

Before long, the inspections were done in record time, and the councilor led her deeper into the bank, to a wide elevator which almost appeared out-of-the-place at the back of the building which the group would ride down into the bowels of the place.

"I wonder whether I'll be disillusioned with what we have down there."

"Oh, no you won't, madam. I myself am fascinated to investigate the researchers' handiwork after all these years."

 **-x-x-x-x-x-**

"Greetings, madam, councilor. I am Dom'Lusam, one of the facility's directors, and today I will accompany you two as we evaluate the experiments we've conducted here for the last six years. Be aware that the Council's agents are monitoring us non-stop, and that the Intel given to you from now on cannot be made available to anyone outside of this place. Are we clear?"

"Affirmative, director."

"Lead the way, please."

Upon their arrival in the compound's lowest level, the spymistress had to once again appreciate how intricate the design of the base was, no doubt inspired by the rampant paranoia of a future slave uprising and the necessity to rapidly deal with the situation at a moment's notice. Director Lusam certainly didn't bother squandering money on anything not related with the Council's continuing existence, but she had to wonder why the director bothered to install plenty of high-end technology in the base, many of which didn't seem to be related to science experimentation. His talks about 'clone armies' went almost completely over the female Sylvon's head, that is, until the group descended a flight of staircase into a tall, long room with oval things lining up the walls.

The stasis pods filled the long chamber as far as the spymistress' eyes could see. Translucent liquid inside them reflected the shine of the chamber's round lamps, emanating dancing green light. It was charming, the spymistress thought in awe, as if the chamber has an artificial aurora that rivaled the mystique of real auroras. But it wasn't the light that actually charmed her, oh no, but the contents stored within the pods. All that monetary investment and feverish scientific experiments since the age of her predecessor finally grew into something ready to accomplish their purpose.

Cloned foot soldiers. Hundreds upon hundreds of plain-looking Sylvons created through extensive genetic engineering and tank-based growth. All have no rights as citizens. All have no means to think for themselves. They were all made for a single purpose; war. Their faces were dead calm, or perhaps uncaring of their true reason of existence. Sylvon scientists here and there tended to the pods, ensuring that all clone soldiers grew correctly according to the required standards. Oh yes, what were the intended standards for these unholy beings? The spymistress caressed her facial tentacles as she paid close attention at the records provided by Director Lusam and the lab's informants. Great tolerance against physical pain, very high endurance, very high adaptability, very high level of obedience to the point of committing suicide upon orders, able to work for weeks without food or rest... all of those came at the expense of debilitating sensitivity towards high-pitched noise. Even the director himself was livid at the prospect of sending the clones to live training or even active duty while still in imperfect condition, but the Council's orders were orders after all.

There was no way to fix that one flaw unless the researchers could throw more resource into it.

"Of course, they still require some gene conditioning before they can be put into any use," Director Lusam elucidated matter-of-factly. Councilor Astrax nodded grimly.

"How long before the clones are ready for live training?" the Spymistress queried, stepping closer to read the plaques put on top of each stasis pods. They showcased some basic information such as a clone's batch number, genomic type, and date of creation. One particular batch intrigued her; the particular set of pods contained scrawny-looking Sylvon clones, not necessarily combat-worthy in appearance but looked innocent and flexible enough to serve as lone assassins or thieves, depending on their assigned missions.

"Some batches is schedule to be ready for training in one month. Others might need three months or more before their bodies are ready to endure harsh treatments," the councilor traded uncertain glances with a nearby group of scientists.

The spymistress sniffed. In her mind she was relatively prepared to have her allies in the Council's armed forces to schedule intense drill sessions for the clones. Alas, the fabricated soldiers were not super-powered entities. They needed orientation of what they were in nature, what they were meant to do, what abilities they must keep, and how to maximize their potential as the Council's deadliest troops.

"For your convenience, the researchers had also studied samples of prospective attack animals, and have gestated several test subjects for you to evaluate."

"Attack animals?"

"Affirmative. This way, please."

Director Lusam provided her a data-pad as the group wandered away; some unspecified project titled 'hellhounds' was displayed in it, if the data was of any indication. Quite an unfamiliar project they had in here, the Spymistress observed as the scientists led her and Councilor Astrax into another wing of the underground facility, one which was square-shaped and a bit brighter than the previous.

What she witnessed excited and shocked her simultaneously.

They were really cloning attack animals, and they did so in the most mind-bending method possible. At the center of the new camber were two enormous steel cages, each held around half a dozen animals created with the sole purpose of being biological armaments. No... Animals didn't even begin to describe them. They were all reddish brown and dead-looking, so much so that it almost got the spymistress thinking the fiends wore animal blood as tattoo. Their heads alone should tell any beholders that these beasts were _wrong_ to begin with, having six deep red eyes that moved independently from each other and long, round jaws hiding nested mouths in each mouth. They were six-limbed; four spindly legs ended in five-sickle-clawed feet, and two skeletal arms with three-fingered hands, all of which generated an image of undead monsters craving the flesh of the living. Shrills accompanied by clicking noise emerged from their long throats as they behaved pugnaciously toward everything that moved, including their equally-twisted siblings. Long barbed tails sprout from their backs which the spymistress assumed to be venomous, if their curved fangs weren't already so. If the Indoraptors were big, the monsters here were twice bigger. In short, the monsters could be summed up as devil incarnates.

"You are all a bunch of mad scientists..."

"Madam, we assure you that what we're doing here is strictly..."

"And I love it! I really do! When can we start training the animals?"

The researchers, Councilor Astrax, and her escorts all stared in disbelief at the spymistress, whom they believed would reprimand them for creating something so out of normalcy, let alone antagonistic toward all living beings. Clearly they thought she had lost her mind, praising an army of animalistic abomination with such reverence. Just look at her, gazing in awe at what others probably considered as witchcraft brought into life.

Coughing, the councilor attempted to steer the female Sylvon's attention back to reality. "So, do you think these beasts will prove useful in psychological warfare against the aliens?" Astrax asked her in a sensible manner.

"Psychological warfare?" the spymistress answered, turning away from the monsters, "Simply revealing the existence of our new attack animals to our enemies will give them nightmares for days. Can you imagine it? But definitely we cannot give our surprise too soon; otherwise they will take action against this. If you can, have the 'hellhounds' fitted with tracking sensors so we won't lose them. Also spare some sedatives just in case they get too untamable." The scientists bowed and scrambled to see whether they could bring about her requests in the shortest time possible.

A cough came from behind her. As it turned out, the director had another file ready for the female to examine; it's a poll from the Council members on Akantorin, asking the Miralis leader should she desire to open war against the Union anytime soon. The ground zero? Shangri, one of the Union's colonies with alpine biome as the main climate.

"Well, what do you think?"

"I am personally itching to say yes, but tell the other councilors to give us three months; a month to let the clones grow into shape, and two more to put them in exercises. Do you think we should arm them with Council-approved armaments, or do we pull favors from black markets?" The spymistress spoke calmly, despite worrying about possible losses on the clone soldiers' first real endeavor, "Remind me to send mails to Naja. With luck, he'll have time to set up infiltration undertakings for the first ones."

"Let's play it safe for the moment. Only when the first batch of clones failed to live up to the task shall we procure black market stuff to provide our next batch of clones," Astrax warned, as he too was unwilling to lose their best assets too quickly.

What would happen, then, when the time comes where both warring sides went all out with everything they got?

 **-x-x-x-x-x-**

 _Indoraptor Year 382, March15th, Deep Space Communications Satellite..._

 _ **(RETRIEVING CONVERSATION ARCHIVE...)**_

 _ **(ARCHIVE LOCATED, PLEASE WAIT...)**_

" _Greetings, Lord Ashford. This is the second time we carry out our dialogue on private channel."_

" _ **Thankfully, this channel has been confirmed to be secure by the Imperium's technicians. That is... if you follow the instruction we anonymously sent you.**_ _"_

" _So that was you?"_

" _ **Correct. We no longer erred on the skeptic side once we finally know for sure the damn mollusks pried our internet here and there for scraps of Intel. better safe than sorry, right?**_ _"_

" _Ingenious."_

" _ **Thank you, Prime Chief. But let's not dabble around in that**_ _."_

" _Right, my apologies. You are looking for more good news, Lord Ashford?"_

" _ **Yes.**_ _ **For your information, we currently have three major combat fleets accompanied by several scout flotillas. Each fleet consists of three dozen corvettes, a dozen destroyers, three cruisers and one battleship. As for our military prowess, I'll say we specialize on kinetic arsenal and software hacking, unless we include special force soldiers. Have you ramped up your military strength yet?**_ _"_

" _Four fleets, to be precise. Each has twenty five corvettes, fifteen destroyers and five cruisers. To compensate for our lack of actual battleships, our weaponry is designed to pierce through armor and disrupt enemy ship's shields. You can say, the Grand Fleet possesses a good combination of missiles, kinetic artilleries and energy lasers. How about our foot soldiers, then? All were trained to excel in close-quarter combat, although we do have a large contingent of snipers and anti-personnel carriers."_

" _ **That's good to know! How are your cyberwarfare capabilities? Any superb hacking and network disruption skills, or perhaps target analyzing?**_ _"_

" _Roughly the same level as yours; no super fancy gizmos whatsoever. We may be at a disadvantage here, since we don't have self-evolving Artificial Intelligences like you do. Our only hope is that the Sylvons are not as tech-savvy as both you species and mine. If they are..."_

" _ **Hmpf, if I have data on that, we'd very likely got our AIs working on systems jamming technology right away**_ _."_

" _Never hurts to start the project early if you want to, my Lord. Any strategic resources in your ownership? I believe we've gathered some terraforming gases and special ores for ship construction, but nothing really important for the Grand Fleet."_

" _ **Betharian stones for energy generators and these weird red crystals that boost our warships' armor penetration rate somehow.**_ _"_

" _Shall we increase our efforts in securing more vital resources? For safety assurance, of course."_

" _ **For now we might put it on hold. Any message from your side about the... new neighbors, Chief Alven?**_ _"_

" _The Nivens? Yeah, to put it mildly, the flightless birds are kind of warrior-like in ideology, although they do respect others who seek assistance against contemptible people like the Sylvons. All our emissary did was saying something along the line of 'the Sylvons fight us from the shadows, using insults and pirates instead of open warfare', and suddenly the Nivens were all riled up! They offered their expertise at no cost, just so that they have some cowardly aliens to beat up. Thank the Heavens for that; we were so edging on cynical levels as of late."_

" _ **But they don't make demands at all, Chief Alven?**_ _"_

" _No, they didn't. Their service was allegedly free of charge. Why?"_

" _ **You're one lucky guy here, Chief. The cat people... sorry, the Mildari, after we asked them to contribute something to the future war, appealed for a prospect to settle and trade on our colony worlds. Now, I am mindful of how the Mildari are mostly harmless xenophiles, but for them to own permanent residence here could spark unneeded conflicts. We Humans could be tetchy around strangers if that's the right expression**_ _._ _ **Our species has yet to make direct contact until now but some people are beginning to show anti-alien views just by initiating interaction with the Mildari.**_ _"_

" _Hmm... maybe I can pull some favor from our Overseers, but don't raise your hope yet. We're still reeling a little bit from the recent alien contact."_

" _ **I will probably... uh, damn. Pardon me, but something required my attention immediately. When do you wish to initiate another conversation?**_ _"_

" _Sometime in July or August, assuming no danger happened to us."_

" _ **Very well. Godspeed, Chief Alven.**_ _"_

" _Be on your guard too, Lord Ashford. Winter is coming."_


	15. Chapter 15

**Bloodbath (Part 1)**

 _Indoraptor Year 38_ _2_ _,_ _August 1st_ _,_ _Shangri (Wuxing system),Capital City's Outer Borders_ _..._

If there's anything Raizex disliked about his duty today, it'd be his patrolling schedule, scouting the outer rim of Shangri's capital city. Normally in these kind of days Raizex would be tasked in intelligence gathering and analysis like he had been doing for three months before this adjustment, but for unexplained excuses his acting captain had replace him with some unnamed graduate from the homeworld's military academy, compelling the young Indoraptor to reschedule his weekly roster and...

Well, look at where it got him. Some makeshift military encampment just outside the capital city where chilly winds swept through the hilly terrain was, wonderfully, the least of his concerns. He already got himself used to the cold climate of Shangri since July.

Working separately from Rivea and Vion was squarely on the top of his ' _10-reasons-why-the-damn-captain-sucks'_ list.

What he got in return was a group of four Indoraptors of loser archetypes. Each was handpicked by the captain under the assurance that they were all competent. In reality, they were not.

Seriously, having four unbelievably incompetent and hopeless Indoraptors as teammates, with himself as the appointed leader, was positively hell. Let's check the list first; to top it off, there was the stereotypical Tough Guy, who's got two humongous assault rifles and a bulky shotgun as his main arsenal ( _where the hell did the guy bought his toys?_ ), and absolutely nothing else in possession, not even aptitude. Then there's the Loner Guy, some random soldier who got pulled from his post on Cognita and shut himself out from the group; even Xivena the Agnaktor friend of Raizex never had this kind of trouble. Then there's the slutty Goth Chick, whose most prominent ability consisted of agile feet and the proclivity of firing blindly at her targets just because she liked carnage. Oh, to add insult to injury, did Raizex mentioned how Goth Chick enjoys wearing provocative armor suit on field missions? Even her blatant carnal vigor was nothing compared to the immense stupidity of the Smart Guy who, as far as Raizex could tell, was a total idiot lacking in actual self-defense skills, not to mention his love to preach how a live mission should be handled in spite of not having leadership capacities on his own. Obviously this Indoraptor didn't pass his training on the academy, and the higher ups had no choice but to get rid of him. How did they do that? By assigning Smart Guy to the most difficult colony to live in, expecting his companions to offhandedly execute him once they had enough of his boundless gusto.

The absence of trust among them only widened the previously existing rift. As much as he hated it, Raizex did his best to bring the ragtag bunch of weirdoes together as close friends, but his attempts were in utter failure. No amount of exercise or recon missions could make them forget their differences. Only Goth Chick seemed interested in becoming friends with him, and even then her thirst for sexual intercourse only served to turn Raizex off her. He wouldn't sacrifice Lyra for some random girl whom he barely be acquainted with.

Raizex swore, once his roster on Shangri was over, he'll stick close to his two best buddies and never ever work with bungling people again.

So, in one misty morning, having approaching the limit of his patience, Raizex found his legs taking him away from his bivouac where his current teammates slept in, snoring like triceratops. The instinct to seek shelter in somewhere comfortable led him to leave the perimeter, away from other soldiers on guard duty. Raizex could tell, based on how the sun gently rose on the horizon that the next group of troops would take over the patrolling schedule, allowing the current group to get some sleep.

The surrounding scenery was nice-looking, he confessed. To the south was a small clearing dotted with yellowish flowers where Raizex and a few others would practice their close quarter combat skills. An oval lake spanned the north and northeast side of the encampment, full of alien fish and other freshwater creatures deemed edible for Indoraptors, and also a good place where troops were taught how to swim while carrying all manners of loads. Rolling hills with tall viridian trees covered the western side of the camp, whereas the colony's capital city lay on the east, some 300 meters away from the camp's entry gate. Raizex sniffed the air for any special scents. To his liking, the flowery clearing felt perfect for private meditation, and he redirected his way there.

He didn't wear his armor, just his off-duty uniform. He trailed his fingers across the right side of his chest and relaxed at the thought of carrying his concealed glaive along.

To be honest, lately the young Indoraptor had been getting weird feelings the more time he spent at the colony. The air seemed to bring ominous message as he breathed in them each passing day, as if warning him that something bad was going to happen. He shared his thoughts more than once to more knowledgeable Indoraptors after carrying out certain tasks, and unsurprisingly they agreed to the feeling. Moreover, the planet was supposed to be entering its equivalent of spring season, which meant animals were going to breed and look for food. But what they saw was the complete opposite; birds and critters running away in fear from their nests, and the Indoraptors weren't even the ones disturbing them. The simple-minded folks would chalk it up as them being uncomfortable at the soldiers' presence.

For Raizex and those who shared his conviction, the animals were running from something worse. And their baffling distress should've raised red flags on all sides.

Silence accompanied him as he drifted toward a particular tree; the one which bark was full of cut marks, evidence of the young soldier's practice with throwing knives. While he didn't like how the knives were too light in his grasp, he adored the speed of the attack. That is, of course, if he could get the knife to hit the target on the spot. Having the glaive as a long-range melee weapon correspondingly beat the inevitability to get too close to the enemy like how knife-wielders had.

As he got closer to the practice tree, however, Raizex noticed how the grass around his feet was pressed to the ground, signifying that a creature walked through them just recently.

Was there someone else before him?

"Hello again, my friend."

A voice behind the tree startled Raizex so much that he unsheathed his glaive in a flash.

"What the- who is it?!"

"Hey, hold on! This is me, Xivena! Did you forget my voice?!"

Stepping out from the tree's shadow were two aliens, the familiar Xivena and a bird-like person with a scowling expression. Raizex realized it must be a Niven. "Damn it, sweet Heavens grant mercy on me. What the hell are you doing here? Why did I not receive any notice on your arrival?" Raizex ranted as he sheathed his glaive under his uniform.

"Okay, okay, I'm sorry. I... We were in a hurry to get here," Xivena said apologetically, "we had to make our arrival undetected, and with the Prime Chief's acknowledgement too." Looking to his side, the Agnaktor agent mentally slapped himself for not introducing the Niven. "So... let's have yourselves accustomed to each other, then. Zonae, I introduce you Raizex Valzack, my partner and special contact from the Indoraptor Union. Raizex, this is Zonae Silverwing, a reconnaissance operative from the Niven Compact of Cyran." Raizex nodded at the avian's presence, whereas Zona tilted his head back and forth as a sign of accepting his new ally, even though Raizex didn't know that.

"I'm surprised the Republic had their hands in this multi-species cooperation quite early."

"A foul plot is about to unravel, Raizex, and I had to be present to deliver unchallenged proof to the Executive. It's a miracle the Compact are so willing to get their hands on this almost immediately," Alarmed, but interested, Raizex wondered if the Republic has caught wind of the uneasiness which pervaded Shangri's populace. The whispers about shadows moving here and there beyond the fences of the city...

"You are suspicious of something, my new fellow from the Union. I can see your eyes darting here and there as if waiting for a predator to jump on you," said Zonae, whose keen eyes alternated between studying Raizex's face and watching the trees surrounding them.

"I know, right?" Raizex nodded. He felt a little safer at the company of the Niven, who also scanned the horizon with his sharp yellow eyes. "For weeks I've been sniffing the air and got this strong urge to yell at everyone to gear up and wait for an enemy to invade. I've tried talking it with the wiser ones among us, and they all said yes, the Mother Nature of this planet had been unusual as of late. What news is available on your side?" "More whispers, believe it or not. The Republic's spies claimed to have smelled a plot of planetary invasions. Made by the Sylvons, I'm sure of it. The kicker is, the Sylvons are about to deploy biological weapons if they really do invade our planets, though our spies failed to discern whether the bioweapons are contagious or not."

"Damn..."

"That's why we are here, on Shangri," Xivena explained, not minding the vigilant Indoraptor moving his gaze everywhere, "my agents and Zona's troops will arrive soon enough, but they need eyes on the ground to scout the perimeter. Based on the stolen Intel, the invasion's ground zero will be near the colony's capital city if not at the city itself." At this information, Raizex inwardly felt grateful toward those who took precautions at the sight of the foreboding signs, and even more so toward the spies who risked so many things in order to buy the Union, the Republic, and the Compact more time to gather combatants and resources.

"Eek, why don't we split our factions into different tasks, then? I'll organize my flocks to play the defensive role when the invading aliens arrive, so that the Indoraptors can play the offensive role to drive them out, while the Agnaktors have their flocks prepare medical support or intelligence gathering," Zonae offered his thoughts.

"Uh, sure, why not?" Raizex agreed, knowing he'd need to collect all available data and allies to survive. "It should be time for my commanding officers to wake up and start their shift. I'll forward all we have conferred now as soon as possible."

And with a nod of agreement from his xeno friends, Raizex parted ways and strutted back to the camp.

 **-x-x-x-x-x-**

Raizex ran as fast as he could. Trying as he might, his breathing won't slow down now that his fears were confirmed; the Sylvons were here, on Shangri, to instigate an annexation.

Back on the clearing, he parted with Xivena and Zonae with the intent to tell everything he's discussed with them to his captain, but felt safe enough on his trip to not break into a dash. The slow walk back to the encampment turned into a race against time once Raizex witnessed mysterious figures hiding among some secluded foliage, bearing unmistakable insignias on their suits; the national logo of the Council of Akantorin. Having sharp eyes to see distant objects helped him quite nicely as he did not have to get any closer to the Sylvon scouts to get definite sighting.

That didn't mean he's out of the trouble.

Raizex had to warn all personnel on the camp. He had no idea how to do it without being accused of behaving indecently, but he had to! No one would be safe as the aliens were undoubtedly planning to march into the camp with guns blazing and explosives thrown at any target they could find. And Heavens have mercy on him if he couldn't tip anybody off, because Raizex was determined to not let his people fall to the marauders, not as long as he's still alive, dammit!

Soon, panic and paranoia crept flooded his mind. What if the Sylvons were already ransacking the camp? What if Raizex's choice to wander away proved to be his platoon's downfall? Running on his legs alone didn't felt fast enough for him, so Raizex elected to gallop on all fours, periodically checking on his uniform to make sure he kept his glaive on his person.

Much to his relief, Raizex arrived to find the encampment safe and sound.

His eyes trailed over the tents and the chattering soldiers, unaware of the latest proceedings, but he couldn't find his captain or any of the other commanding officers. Were they still sleeping or somewhere else? Raizex swallowed his questions for later as he walked past the guards on watch duty, doing his best to hide the bubbling sensation of anxiety inside him. From time to time, he felt like the other soldiers would look at him questioningly; perhaps they noted his distress? Raizex decided to pay no mind to it, preferring to navigate his way to his camp to prepare his tools for when the Sylvons finally came in hot. He only needed to watch for one sign as of where his tent was; if Loner Guy was already awake, he'd be stretching his muscles in front of the tent's entrance.

Sure enough, after ten minutes or so walking around the base camp, he located where Loner Guy was, doing his morning exercise as usual. Upon catching sight of the approaching Indoraptor, the solitary person moved out of the way without a single word or any greeting of any kind.

For the first time in forever, Raizex was thankful for it.

Nobody stopped him as he slipped past the open bivouac. Nobody stopped him as he removed his off duty uniform and donned his service armor, not even Tough Guy, who's already up and alert despite still lying down on his bunk playing Heavens-know-what on his eraphone. He either completed his morning routine earlier than Raizex believed or he hadn't done any of them yet. Better get suited up and let them be, then.

"Good morning, babe!" Damn it, if it wasn't the ever-so-attention-seeking Goth Chick greeting Raizex with the usual disgusting word 'babe'. She just had to extend the 'o' sound in her voice too.

"Gah. Hi to you, too."

"What's the hurry, getting yourself prepped in your suit so early in the daybreak?"

As she said that, her hands slithered up Raizex's waist; evidently it was another gross attempt at making him her sex toy. The displeased male Indoraptor briskly pushed her hands away, feeling offended at her behavior. "Look, if you want to have sex on bed, please find some other guys outside. I've got a meeting to book with a captain or two," Raizex said unemotionally, unaware and uncaring that he just earned himself a dirty annoyed glare from Goth Chick.

He examined his suit, checking if all components were all set. Greaves, shoulder pads, torso plates, helmet, Raizex counted them one at a time, making sure not to leave anything he required behind, including weapons. Just as he made his way to the exit, a drawling voice interrupted his thoughts.

"The captains usually wake up at 8:00. The commanders on the other hand leave their tents at 8:30. The time at the moment is 7:20. Therefore if you want to talk to either of them, you best wait until..." Oh well, look who's dabbling info without getting his facts straight; Smart Guy. Not a surprise once one got used to him.

"Yes, THANK YOU VERY MUCH, kiddo! I know what time they woke up every morning!"

Without waiting for the haughty bastard to retort, Raizex stormed off to find a person of high authority to listen to what he had to say. A captain, a commander, anyone.

Stretching his neck upward, he could see people gathering to make breakfast throughout, including several people in specific uniform. Maybe one of them could be his acting captain? Walking past more Indoraptors stepping out of their bivouacs allowed him to take note of how they were all prepared for their daily roster; they simply weren't conscious of an impending attack. Shivers ran down his spine as he quickened his footsteps. Where in the world was the male in question? The folks in different uniform weren't him at all. The sun has risen higher and certainly there had to be telltale sign of the male being up and running to get his men ready for duty. One minute, then five minutes, and then ten minutes gone by and Raizex did nothing but walk in circles, unable to find his commander-in-chief in the midst of the multitude of other Indoraptors. Just as he finally gave up and decided to go talk to another person in charge in the captain's absence, a number of explosions rocked the camp, not too much but enough to send all personnel into high alert. Raizex, momentarily taken in by a distracting flashback from his time in Lemuria, instantly knew that his time was up; the Sylvons were here.

Grabbing a lone shotgun from a pile of crates and some ammunition, Raizex rushed alongside the rest of the camp to see where the blasts came from and by whom. He was all too mindful of who did it. Prepared to fight back, violently if he had to, and with the shielding members among them setting up covers for possible follow-up detonations, Raizex took a position on the far side of the masses, close enough to run for cover between the adjacent vegetation. He jumped on a large rock where he could witness them clear as day; dozens upon dozens of Sylvons, some by foot, some others by armored military vehicles, charging straight at the base camp. Someone, a commanding officer of another platoon it seemed, shouted for the soldiers to open fire, either by using heavy artilleries to incapacitate the vehicles or sniper rifles to pick the invaders off one by one while they're still far. There was no turning back now.

"Listen, if we flank them from the open field at the east it'd be easier to bring them down quickly, since they'll be more focused on blasting the city's main gate than shooting at us!" Ah, there he was again, the Smart Guy with his misjudged propositions. He even forgot to don his own armor suit, unlike the rest of Raizex's team. Raizex briefly considered following his advice if only the Sylvons didn't unleashed their rocket launchers first, directing their heavy weaponry right at where the Indoraptors were shoring up defenses, all the while ignoring the capital city's gate.

The defenders' first salvo blasted the rocket launcher-carrying Sylvons, but suffering from noticeable casualties also. Undeterred, they loaded up their artilleries for another salvo. For every cannons the Indoraptors fired, the Sylvons fired their own as reckless as they possibly could, seemingly forgetting that their reserves were not unlimited. People falling from both sides as the aggressors became closer and closer to the defenders.

A blast shook the ground just as Raizex shot a lone Sylvon who dashed too close to where he stood. The young Indoraptor removed his helmet to find himself staring to the mangled body of Loner Guy, blown away by the force of the detonation.

"Rest in peace," Raizex muttered, putting his helmet back on.

Analyzing the battlefield for a safe spot to hide in, Raizex instinctively thought of the forest on the hills. He knew for certain that the Sylvons required no more protection from the forest once they became conscious of how they had the advantage of surprise attack against the Indoraptors, and now they did one glaring mistake; the legionnaires turned their backs on the forest, giving anyone who hid themselves in there a chance to retaliate. Right, he understood what he should do, and immediately forwarded his plan to his teammates. Before he could grab his companions and flee to a safer place among the forest, Smart Guy once again came up with his not-so-brilliant ideas. He just had to grab a hold of Raizex's arm to do it, "Forget the trees! Our aiming will be severely reduced and we can't see anything clearly! What we ought to do is-"

Right before Smart Guy could finish whatever it was he wanted to say, a stray bomb was lobbed by a Sylvon enemy, unaware that his armament failed to arrive at its intended mark. Regardless, its blast sent forth shrapnel which embedded themselves in Smart Guy's chest, killing him instantly.

"Get blown apart by exploding shrapnel. What a good way to go boy," Tough Guy coldly remarked. Searching the battlefield, he found the Sylvon who threw it and promptly finished the alien off with a barrage of volley from his assault rifle. He wasn't doing it to avenge the boy's demise, however.

Let's be honest here, absolutely nobody missed the know-it-all dude, what with his apparent folly and all.

"Let's move everyone! If Smart Kid wants to die in battle so badly then leave him be!" Raizex roared, narrowly avoiding shots from a nearby mercenary. Dashing swiftly to the would-be assassin, he slashed the alien's legs using his glaive and fired a shot to his head, stopping the Sylvon dead in his tracks.

Raizex then surveyed the surrounding carnage briefly. Most of the invading Sylvons were dead, but another group was visibly coming from the distance and the Indoraptor platoon's strength was wearing down. The struggle ought to be resolved as quick as possible, or there would be a massacre. Sure enough, no sooner than half an hour later, just as when Raizex done scrounging up ammunition from the mercenaries' corpses, the second group of Sylvon legionnaires invaded the base camp, although these ones looked paler and blank-faced than the normal-looking Sylvons with their greedy expression and lesser in numbers. Leading Tough Guy and Goth Chick away from the epicenter of the shootout, Raizex swiftly but carefully navigated the charred pasture. Once in a while a blank-faced Sylvon or two would try their luck in gunning him down, but Raizex always got in closer first and killed them before they became a real threat, although to their credit, these new Sylvons were more resistant to pain and a direct, close-quarter headshot or impalement was necessary to disable them. He reminded himself of what to do; search where the Sylvon army's base was and incapacitate it from the inside; hopefully it'd disrupt the enemy forces long enough for the Grand Fleet to bring in reinforcement. No doubt the glaive-wielding Indoraptor was not really a perfect lone operative, but with Tough Guy's love for gunfight and Goth Chick's proficient in mowing down small groups of enemy soldiers, Raizex held some faith in himself that he could do it while trying to keep track of where Vion and Rivea were. With luck, those two would regroup with him as they attempt to outlast the battle.

The formerly tall green trees bore signs of being crushed apart as Raizex and his remaining companions came close enough to hide behind them, the barks were cut in half by the Sylvons to be used as either fuel to make fire or whatever. A big hindrance, Raizex cursed silently, as it meant their cover was severely diminished. How were they going to sneak through the guards of the invader's holdout?

The answer came from a series of gunshots buzzing from his rear, loud enough for him to identify seven or more assailants firing their weapons rapidly at the same time, but most surprising was that he saw no blood coming out of his body nor did he experienced any sensation of pain. Spinning his body around, shotgun ready in hands, Raizex realized who opened fire from his back; Xivena, of all people, accompanied by another Agnaktor and a battalion of Nivens, all of them wore military-grade armor suits. "Well, I guess I owe you all something, right?" the young Indoraptor sarcastically asked, motioning for Tough Guy and Goth Chick to come along. His eyes landed on the grinning Xivena as the Agnaktor holstered his two guns back. One Niven walked past him to check on a small group of Sylvons lying on top of each other not too far from Raizex's hiding spot, their chests and head were riddled with smoking bullet holes. They were pretty close to ending his life.

"Be glad, Valzack. We've gotten here faster than we previously calculated hey," one of the Nivens spoke up, opening his helmet's visor so Raizex could see how smug-looking Zonae was after saving his tail. "We're glad you made it all the way to the woods. Our objective is not far from here; just pass that hill on the west. Are you coming along? This will be one big assault."

"Right, yeah. In fact, I'm far happier that you guys have no one to hold you back. I've got this fucking idiot who thought he knows everything, and then he was unceremoniously killed off."

Sniggers from his back alerted the fuming Raizex how Goth Chick thought his ranting was funny, that or she held no regard of how pressing their situation was.

"Ignore her if you must, my comrade. We shall proceed to the Sylvon holdout now." Raizex agreed, as with Xivena and the Niven battalion. Surveying his charred base camp from the distance, Raizex noted how the Indoraptors were striking back back at full blast against the third wave of invasion, assisted by the newly-arriving Niven troops who brought their big toys along and vehicles with long guns on them. The Sylvons were in detriment; their elite soldiers one by one dropped dead like flies and the remaining marauders became disorganized under the defenders' fire, running back for protection even though there was none. Not toward Raizex's team as he initially suspected, but toward the hill where Zonae's battalion believed to be their command center.

"Concentrate, my brothers! The cowardly bastards have their teeth no longer bared! Now it's your chance to show them the sweet taste of war!" Zonae shrieked with eagerness and bloodlust excitement, followed by cries of battle from his men.

"Alright, you two, come with me! Xivena, go help my people there, do everything you can to organize resistance on all sides!"

"Leave it to me."

 **-x-x-x-x-x-**

Letting the Niven battalion bought him time by engaging in open firefight with the last of the Sylvons was easy. Breaching past the back door of the weird military holdout was difficult, even with four Nivens escorting him to the destination. Raizex could feel it, every second they wasted in prying the maintenance door open meant more good combatants falling in battle. If the sounds of the skirmish were not lying to him, then the Sylvons were still holding out despite minutes of constant barrage of gunfire from the planet's defense army, employing all manners of desperate defense measures from missile launchers to tripwire bombs. Worse, as soon as the maintenance doors began to crack open wider, at least wide enough for Raizex to squeeze through it, several Sylvon mercenaries found them trying to break in. Raizex, frustrated and angered at how close they were to victory only for the enemy to block their path, raised his shotgun only for whatever left of his bodyguards, including Tough Guy, to tell him to just enter the tunnel and ran for it.

He knew full well how he wouldn't miss the compatriots he was stuck with from the beginning of this battle, sans the uncompromisingly devoted Nivens, which held a special place in his heart. Giving the guardians one final nod, he squeezed past the gap between the doors before closing them with his shoulders.

The doors to the tunnels slammed shut, preventing Raizex from seeing or hearing the battle cry of the Niven flock and his last team members as they advanced to valiantly gun down the Sylvon fighters. Not like he had to; the smell of their blood confirmed his suspicion that everyone outside went down in a blaze of glory.

Now it's just him and a dark, confined tunnel leading to Heavens-know-where.

If only Raizex had his friends to back him up at this very hour.

Right then his comms blared up in static.

" _Valzack, come in Valzack. Please tell us you're not dead yet!_ " Aha, just the companion the lone Indoraptor needed, even if it's just a person on his comms system. "I'm here, Xivena. What's your status?"

" _My colleague and I are fine. We should be able to restructure planet-wide communications shortly. You won't believe me when I say we have more reinforcements! The Imperium of Terra generously spared some of their armed forces to aid our troops, but then I asked them why, and all they told us is that the Sylvons had also staged an open attack on them too. They were informed that a vital Intel to help them endure the assault can be found here, on Shangri. Such a contrived coincidence, don't you think?_ " Raizex only hummed a mumble of gratitude on his acquaintance's survival. " _Oh, pardon me, stand by for a moment. I'll patch you up with your other friends._ "

"Friends? Wait, are you talking about-"

"All's clear, Xivena. We're all set to go," a voice from the dark cut Raizex before he could question further. Shining the makeshift flashlight on his shotgun, Raizex pointed it on the darkened corridor, revealing Vion and Rivea, fatigued but still alive and focused to continue fighting. Vion's right hand was covered in bandage, provoking a pang of guilt from Raizex who, by some means, felt guilty for it. "We're very sorry, buddy. We wanted to look for you out there, but the ferocity of the attack compelled us to use this old unused bunker for shelter," the sniper said with a sheepish glance. He didn't have to apologize, Raizex thought, it was not his fault at all. A big hug was all he gave them, signifying how they didn't have to feel sorry.

" _Is all three of you present?_ " Xivena broke through the comms' silence. The trio intuitively replied in unison, followed by a sigh of respite from the Agnaktor, " _Good. Since the location you're in right now is some sort of old bunker from the Union's early space exploration years, the layout should be simple enough for you to follow. The long tunnel ahead of you leads to a large chamber just 300 meters away._ "

"Okay. You guys ready?"

Both Vion and Rivea nodded.

And together they went, marching down the gloomy tunnel with only their flashlights as the only illumination. While Raizex expected the path to be difficult, if not outright perilous, he did not expect the place to be a little musty and flooded in murky water, even though the water was merely ankle-deep. The three Indoraptors slowed their walk, their feet sloshed gently past the waterlogged corridor, afraid that one loud splash was all it'd take to summon an army of invaders at their direction. From time to time, Xivena would announce himself on their comms, occasionally telling bits of news, such as how the bunker was formerly designed as a fortress to hide from orbital bombardment up until the Union abandoned it, or how relief effort was being rallied from the Union's other colonies and allies.

After minutes of wading through the swamped tunnel, the trio took a breather once they finally reached dry ground. The round chamber, full of disused objects piled on the corners of the room or next to supporting columns, seemed to have dim lighting in the form of tiny emergency lamps, just enough to illuminate the dingy place. Judging from the huge size of the chamber, Xivena was right about the bunker's original use as a military fortress. A box or two were left open on the floor, perhaps even freshly opened by the greedy mollusks, if Zonae's theory was correct.

Raizex was going to poke around the dusty piles of stuff when a shuffling sound perked his interest. At first, he dismissed it as rodents running around, until the team's sniper aimed his rifle at a corner, growling "Who are you? State your name and affiliation."

From behind the column he aimed at, a bipedal figure in combat armor unveiled its presence.

The unknown figure stepped closer to the trio, revealing itself to be a human male, obviously from the Imperium. But why was he here of all places? "Lieutenant Lucas O'Brian, of the Imperium of Terra's Third Fleet. You can call me Luke if it suits you. Anyway, you're Operative Raizex Valzack of the Union's Grand Fleet, right? Commander Adam Ryder and Admiral Kallini Ender said you're spearheading the charge to the invader's base on this planet," the human, Luke, introduced his identity, removing some worries from the trio's minds. Rivea snorted, unconvinced.

Relaxing his posture, Raizex chose to introduce the human to his friends, "Very well, Luke. These are my companions, Vion Hyperion and Rivea Vascon. For this mission, you may refer to me as Raizex. And no, I'm not spearheading anything, Luke; my companions and I are trying to steal some Intel from the Sylvons, find out what else they have under their sleeves." The lieutenant nodded in comprehension.

"Okay, got it. Is there any chance of me joining you for the duration of the mission?"

That was an unanticipated request on the trio's behalf. "Why do you wish to gain?" Rivea eyed him distrustfully.

"One of our colonies, Atlantis, is also under attack at this moment. Since Atlantis is an ocean planet, the damn mollusks has greater advantage in groundside combat unlike here," Luke elaborated. At Raizex's gesture, he continued "Likewise, because a command center base of the Sylvons' invasion has been set up somewhere in Shangri, I'm tasked to assist you as best as I could. With luck, we can drive the mollusks away from Imperium Space as well as here." _Why the Union would suddenly allowed a human into their space while they haven't even opened a formal interaction?_ Vion wordlessly mouthed the query to Raizex, who merely responded with a shrug. Yes, it felt a little too convenient for the Imperium to send help so abruptly, not to mention only one human present at the time. "I assure you that your Prime Chiefs and generals had been informed of this unexpected aid. No need to be suspicious of each other." Even if Luke was telling the truth, the Indoraptors were still unconfident.

"I see some blood streaks on your body," Rivea asked as he shone his flashlight a bit nearer to Luke, obliging the other two to return their attention to the human, "are you hurt?"

The lieutenant didn't reply immediately. "We lost Peterson on our way here," Luke answered in low voice. His face hardened as he remembered how many soldiers he'd lost under his command, "Lucia, Watson, and Quinn went down as we jammed the Sylvon's communication network, and then Enfield and Wong were stabbed in their backs by an unknown figure. I'm all that's left." The three Indoraptors traded uncomfortable glances at the human's testimony.

"Fine. Stick close to us then," offered Raizex.

He contacted Xivena to inform him of the recent encounter. The Agnaktor's response was, to put it mildly, accommodating. " _Very well. You must all work together to complete the mission. Do everything in your power to stay alive,_ " was his answer before the comms went out again.

Now, with the addition of a fourth member, the team marched further into the bunker, passing one more dark hallway until they reached another, more spacious chamber where the Sylvons had markedly set up hideout in preparation of this war. Boxes of ammunition and unidentified weaponry were left scattered all over the chamber, as with small computers and other unknown electric devices that'll interest Lyra if Raizex wished to bring back some for her. As the four advanced to the center of the chamber, a cold laughter emanated from one of the contiguous corridors.

They were not alone.


	16. Chapter 16

**Bloodbath (Part 2)**

 _Indoraptor Year 38_ _2_ _,_ _August 1st_ _,_ _Shangri (Wuxing system), abandoned bunker_ _..._

Magnificent. Measured. Menacing.

There were so many adjectives one could ascribe to the looming figure in front of the four troopers, but none were as fitting as the three mentioned words. Soft springy footsteps carried the mystery person out of his hiding toward the dim light, so full of icy confidence of his own superiority, even as he discerned the black lizards aiming their guns at him could turn his body into bloody mutilated pieces in mere minutes. The flowing dark cloak the alien wore added more mystique to his being.

Raizex knew this person must not be toyed with.

"The benevolent lady speaks of you three," the mystery man began to speak. "She was... impressed, if ever so slightly, at how you trio of little lizards managed to sniff out her plotting months after months." The Indoraptors bared their fangs, very displeased at being called 'little' as if the mysterious man in dark cloak forgot how he's the smaller guy. Apparently, size mattered little to him as he walked closer to the soldiers, still feeling dauntless.

"Let's be honest here, I don't think we're THAT noticeable in front of smug alien bastards, not to mention creepy as well," Raizex taunted, earning him a few nods of encouragement, "Plus, I don't think your lady, whoever the fuck she is, can be as benevolent as I think she is. If anything..."

The unknown man's discordant cackle echoed in the chamber.

"Well, well, the lady was true all along. You lizards are easily infuriated, even by the smallest of insults. As for the Human..." the man suddenly shifted his attention to Lieutenant O'Brian, "I wonder how long will it take for your people to break under pressure. I shall confess, the Council of Akantorin failed to assess how much of a nuisance the Indoraptors would be to our future, but we have been informed, perhaps too well-informed, of how the Human Imperium does its job. Always looking for the shortest, most direct solution, am I correct?"

"What are you talking about?!"

The Sylvon let another echoing strident laughter "You aren't told of what your men and women are going through right now, on Atlantis? What a shame. We thought Humans are a lot more gifted compared to these... uplifted animals, if some of our conjectures are to be believed." Through gritted, Raizex could hear Luke uttering a curse. Did the weird Sylvon had something to do with the follow-up incursion into Imperium Space? "Yeah, I'm not amazed, big words coming from a weird guy who's all alone down here without any means to fight for his own life. Any last words to say before we bring you to justice?" Rivea and Raizex spoke in tandem, having enough of the Sylvon's ostentatious speeches. The assassin, in spite of being outnumbered four to one, smiled in a disturbing way. "I appreciate your bravado, really I do. But why don't I give you a humble gift of appreciation?" His left hand created a snapping gesture to make something happen. Raizex, unsure of what he gestured at, gripped his shotgun tighter just as a shrill howl echoed in the chamber. "I am Naja Shiawariska Jamallu'Sharku, faithful servant of the Miralis brotherhood, and I am pleased to present you one of our scientists' greatest works yet."

From behind Sharku, an animal stepped forth from the shadows, revealing a hellish visage.

"Sweet Heavens and all its mercy, what is that?!" Raizex yelped in fright at the sight of the... thing, whatever it was supposed to be. Six long limbs ending in sickle-clawed feet, long barbed tail, an oval head with nested mouth and multiple eyes, and most of all its demonic appearance, the pale beast howled in anticipation of an upcoming clash. Ragged breathings from such a foul monster was well within the Indoraptor's expectancy; he simply didn't like how it sounded like the thing was starving.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" The assassin said in low, amused voice. This guy was unmistakably out of his mind. His grin was as wide as the beast's snarl.

"You sick bastard!"

Sharku let a cold laugh as the beast leapt forward with the intent to murder, to slaughter its would-be victims. All four combatants rolled away as the beast's feet slammed the ground. Even as they readjusted their aim at the monster, they had no idea where to shot, or even if gunshots were effective to bring down the thing. Clawed limbs shot forward trying to maul anyone who got too near, sometimes trailed by a biting gesture. Vion, taking cover between the pillars, tried to shoot at the beast's head, but all it did was angering it. The beast charged in his direction, only for Raizex to topple it through a shotgun blast to its chest. It appeared to work, but the beast returned to its feet in seconds, baring its venomous-looking fangs in aggravation. It jumped forward hoping to pin the Indoraptors underneath its feet, but Raizex and Vion proved to be faster than it. The beast spun around and performed another jump attack, throwing Rivea off balance as he successfully evaded the claws of the monster. In his hurry a grenade fell from his belt, ready to go off at any second. Impulsively, Raizex kicked it in the direction of the creature, jumping away to safety with Rivea as the grenade exploded, damaging the beast's face.

"Did we kill it?!" Someone, likely Rivea, shouted.

"I don't think so. Undead monsters never stay dead, remember?" Raizex responded.

Miraculously, or not, despite being throw several meters across the chamber, the beast somehow managed to stood back up, albeit with an eye lost from the blast. Raizex reprimanded himself to not tempt fate in the event they ever went up against abominations such as this one. Loading their guns, the trio of Indoraptors braced themselves as the creature came attacking them again at full speed. Raizex dodged the beast's swipe as its claw waved above his head, and then another dodge to the side as the beast stroke forward, trying to chomp him. Unsheathing his glaive, Raizex performed an upward slash three times, puncturing the beast's skin just under its neck. It wasn't deep enough but the speed of the attack caught the beast off guard. One last slash from Raizex, aimed straight at he beast's lost eye, and the beast flinched to the point of losing its footing temporarily. This time, however, the trio aimed for the bleeding eye of the beast, determined to not give the monstrous abomination any more chance to prolong the fight, and with a cue from Raizex, all three opened fire at it. The barrage of bullets rained down on the monster's head which it boldly disregarded, but it was a stray bullet that sent it tumbling down the cold concrete below, wailing in anger and agony as the bullet embedded itself in its injured eye.

Sensing how his monstrous pet began to lose advantage in the fight, the assassin promptly sprinted down a hallway. Catching sight of which corridor the assassin fled into, Raizex roared "C'mon, let's chase him down! Stall the thing as long as you can!"

"Bring down the ceiling if you can!" Luke shouted, seeing that the grenade's blast cracked a few supporting pillars in the chamber. The wounded beast was located precisely in front of them.

"Leave it to me!" Rivea replied, upholstering two more grenades he promptly lobbed at the weakened pillars.

At his command, the grenades were lobbed, causing two columns to break from the blast and fell on the beast, trapping it. But it wasn't enough; the beast was still alive, struggling to get free. Analyzing the situation, Raizex knew they couldn't waste much time on the monster lest Sharku got away. At his signal, the four soldiers beat feet toward the tunnel the assassin fled at, unaware that Rivea let his final grenade went off, bringing down more debris which finally ended the monster's damned existence. Heavy footsteps thudded at the dusty concrete as they chased the Sylvon, gaining more distance as the alien was heard giving orders in a hurry to someone someplace ahead of them. The tunnel seemed to lead to the surface, if the fresh air Raizex breathed in was telling the truth.

In reality, they were still in the bunker, but there was sufficient natural light which told them that exit was very near. So did Sharku, standing along a group of pale, skinny Sylvon mercenaries. "Your benevolent lady is the mastermind behind all this. Am I correct?!" From his left, Vion snarled a question as he aimed his sniper rifle at the alien assassin. "Very perceptive, aren't you little lizard? And while your friends there are as talented as you are, I doubt they'll be around to see how much can a backstabbing hurt you when you least expect it."

"Yeah, thanks for the praise and the vague threat, scary-guy-in-longcoat."

Deciding that the Indoraptors and their Human companion had been a thorn on their side for too long, Sharku motioned for his minions to attack. They were quite fast, Raizex had to give them some credit. One particular Sylvon was so fixated on killing him that he didn't have any other choice but to enter the fray, brandishing his glaive as the unnamed Sylvon fought using her ( _was that a female Sylvon?_ ) own machete. She was brutal, even by Sylvon standards; one moment she was doing horizontal slashing gesture, which Raizex easily counteracted by dancing around her, his glaive moved in a circular manner as he blocked and countered the minion's rabid charge. The next minute, the feminine assailant used many stabbing gestures in her attacks, forcing Raizex to duck or step aside to avoid taking damage. More than once, whenever Raizex moved in for the kill, the Sylvon would aim for his head by using vertical slashes. _Just once I'd like to impale her from the back,_ Raizex thought sourly, otherwise he had to get very close to her and risk being stabbed. Just as he considered taking the dangerous option, the Sylvon made a wrong move; she stabbed forward only for Raizex to evade her, resulting on her machete getting stuck on the wall. In her rush to pull it free, Raizex managed to scuttle close and strike her, first a headbutt, then followed by a swift pierce from his glaive at the Sylvon's chest, downing her instantly.

A sound of commotion caught his attention; Luke was struggling against another Sylvon; the mollusks fingers were wrapped on Luke's neck, as if wanting to choke him out. In a flash, the young Indoraptor yanked his glaive out of his dead enemy's corpse and flung it across the room. The force of his throw was sufficient enough to pierce through the other assailant's armor, causing fatal wound on his heart.

"Thanks for the help," said the Human lieutenant as Raizex helped him to stand up. Both immediately retrieved their weapons in preparation for more skirmish, but thankfully the rest of Sharku's minions were done for, courtesy of Vion and Rivea.

All of them regrouped at the center of the room, together facing Sharku who's visibly irate at the loss of his elite combatants. But before anyone could say anything, the assassin's expression inexplicably returned to the cold, suave mime he had earlier. "I'd be happy if we can have some more intense struggling to see who's the strongest among us, but my time here is about to expire," the Sylvon said in emotionless voice. Raizex didn't know how, but the way the alien spoke sent chill down his belly as he was precipitously reminded of his first mission against Sylvon terrorists, in particular the failed suicide attempt done by one of them. Sharku's hands were empty of any lethal objects, but he wouldn't rule out a possibility of him committing self-termination without his consent.

In his shock, the assassin instead pulled out a long metallic flash from his cloak. A bomb, maybe? "Why don't I bid you farewell for now?"

"Don't you dare to-"

The Sylvon assassin refused to wait for Raizex to finish. In one uninterrupted move, he threw the pipe-bomb not at his opponents, but toward the ceiling. The young Indoraptor's inattentiveness turned into panic once the bomb detonated, bringing down the bunker on them. Everyone frantically rushed toward the exit as the Sylvon assassin had done mere moments ago. The hovering dust unsettled Raizex's eyesight, blurring his vision in the midst of the team's mad dash to survival.

Just as the exit was well within reach, rocks crumbled all over them, and all became black.

 **-x-x-x-x-x-**

 _Indoraptor Year 38_ _2_ _,_ _August 4th_ _,_ _Wuxing system, Union's colony starport_ _..._

It had been three long days after the harrowing calls on Shangri. As of now Raizex, his friends, Lieutenant O'Brian, and countless other Indoraptors were onboard the _USV Stegodon_ , an unusually huge cruiser-type spaceship which had been generously converted as a temporary transport vessel and a medical one.

The ship was en route to Imperium Space, under the Prime Chief's permission after endless hours of bargaining from the Imperium's top brass, who claimed to suffer a heavier raid from the cursed invertebrates. The Grand Fleet has five separate fleets, two for tackling the pirates who breached the Union's borders, two to chase the Sylvons out of Union Space, and the fifth one to guard Earth Prime. The Imperium, on the other hand, possessed four separate fleets of substantially stronger military power, with three getting hindered by the Council's frequent hit-and-run attacks and the fourth one having to stand by the parallel Earth. Suffice to say that the Humans had it worse than the Indoraptors.

This was the fourth day of the war, and although Shangri was mostly cleared of all enemies, the problem was still far away from its resolution. Now, an oceanic colony planet of the Imperium had called for assistance, and the Union and its allies were obliged to come for support.

The dull white room Raizex was placed in was a makeshift medical bay, haphazardly arranged when the influx of injured soldiers nearly overflowed the actual medical sector of the ship. Of course, Raizex never had to complain; the soft humming of the ship's engine helped to calm his nerves and the attending doctors were kind enough that he was very, very grateful for leaving the cold colony world after so long. The interior of the cruiser sparked quite an interest in him, but he must stay put and recover his strength until he's cleared for active duty. His twisted knee effectively confined him in the bay until he's healed, anyway.

It was a miracle that all four of the team's members were even alive after being trapped.

Admiral Ender, however, chalked it up as his rescue squad being pretty close to the area of the skirmish between the Indoraptors and Sharku's underlings.

He should've been thankful, Raizex scolded himself, because his right knee was easy to fix. Vion and Rivea, luckily, suffered minimal injuries at best. He's heard the doctors conversed how Luke had it worst; his left leg was fractured in two places after being trapped under the bunker's rubble. Since the medical practitioners possessed no intimate knowledge on how to mend a Human's leg bone, the ship's CO was entreated to allow Human doctors from one of the orbiting ships to come aboard. It was kind of unnerving, at first, for the Humans to work alongside tall dinosaurian creatures. Nowadays they've gotten themselves used to the Indoraptors.

From time to time, one or two of Zonae Silverwing's Niven soldiers would come to give him Intel. The first time, it was a list of notable casualties from the first raid. Their second visit one day after had them revealed to him how much troops the mollusks had in their reserves; somewhere between four separate divisions with packs of hellbeasts assumed among them. The third visit, this time was conducted by Silverwing himself, allowed Raizex to examine the report on Sharku's devilish pet's anatomy once cleanup teams managed to secure its dusty corpse from beneath the rubble. Silverwing's only comment spoke of how he "wanted to know Raizex's way of breaking the news to the Imperium," suspecting that the attackers had also unleashed their bioweapons on the Humans.

"Let's be honest, fellow hunters, I've got no clue if the Humans already know about the beasts or not," was all Raizex said.

"Well, you'll have to speak up to them sooner or later," Silverwing warned him in soft voice before leaving.

And so he went back to resting. Waiting for the Union's strongest fleet to wrap up business in the system and follow the Imperium's support fleet all the way to Imperium Space.

This meant more monsters were on the way. Damn it.

There were three fleets; one from the Union, the second one from the Compact, and the last one was the Imperium's battle fleet. It'd take at least three weeks for all of them to make it to the star system in question, Kepler Beta the Humans called it, and several days to organize the troops into specialized platoons to storm the Sylvon's holdout on Atlantis...

Raizex was seated in an otherwise empty passageway, reading a pamphlet on the Union's progressive development. Feeling bored, he put the pamphlet down and opened his eraphone, checking any messages from his parents or Lyra. What caught his sight, however, was the date; August 10, which meant six days passed since the three joint fleets departed from Wuxing system. He was about to return to his room when a human woman advanced toward him. "Operative Valzack?" the woman clad in blue uniform spoke.

"Call me Raizex."

The Human stopped, standing in formal posture as she eyed him considerately. "I am Commander Julia Samson. We heard you encountered one of the Council's bioweapon down there on the planet's old bunker." Slowly standing up from his seat, Raizex greeted the woman via a handshake, noting how weird it would be if he gave her, a military personnel from another species, a salute. To his credit, the commander responded in kind. "Let me guess, the Prime Chief has debriefed you on that." Raizex was certain he mistook a little fact, but if not, then it meant the three fleets must be taking some time in an empty star system to let their warp drives cool down. This brief respite perhaps gave the different species a chance to move between ships, a possible explanation for why the Human commander was here.

"Actually, the Intel came from your planetside Overseer, but with the blessing of Prime Chief Alven, we are given authority to interrogate you on the matter." Ugh, an interrogation?! The young Indoraptor stared in disbelief. He would be honored if she could ask it in a more polite manner, but pulling him in for interrogation? She must've lost her mind.

"Listen, human lady, I don't care if you're here to squash information out of me of to diagnose me with some fancy psychological verses, but all you want to know has been printed on paper. Go talk to one of the Grand Fleet's admirals if you want more details."

"While I do appreciate your desperate need for privacy, the Imperium is in dire need of information," Commander Samson coldly rebuffed his attempt to be left alone.

"And why is that?"

"If what you and your men said about 'bio-engineered mutant beast' was true, then we ought to examine all available evidence you've uncovered. Back on Atlantis, countless men and women were found dead, slaughtered beyond recognition, sometimes even showing signs of being devoured by unidentified entity. My superiors assumed there's a connection between the... monster you defeated and the entity attacking our troops and civilians on our besieged colony. Your allies, the Nivens, were openly discussing the Council's living bioweapon on their comm channels, calling it a bio-engineered attack animal." Unsaid in her statement was the fear at the prospect of sending her men blindly into the axiomatic slaughterhouse. Good thing too, as Commander Samson ought to realize what kind of monstrosity her men were going to face later. "So you... wanted data on how to defeat them? Prevent more casualties?"

"Correct. I need all specifics you can share with us; the creature's actual form, its offensive and defensive capabilities, its use at the hands of the Sylvon Council, everything," The commander summarized her intention in one long

"I agree, then," Raizex concurred, "But under the agreement that I am allowed to bring one witness with me, at the very least."

"And who will that person be?"

"Admiral Kallini Ender. I believe he's using this cruiser as his mobile command center."

As much as she hated it, this ship was indeed the Union admiral's, and therefore he had rights to eavesdrop on any conversation, so the commander had no choice but to agree. And so the two of them made their way across the ship, looking for a specific room to be used as Commander Samson's impermanent interrogation place. On their trip to the ship's middle section, they surprisingly ran into Admiral Ender, who was looking for Raizex with the intent to cross-examine him as well. Sensing an opportunity to drag the old Indoraptor along, Raizex quickly seized the moment to elaborate what he and the Human commander was going to do, hoping to get the admiral to jump on the wagon so to speak. The faintly jubilant Raizex didn't know why, but for some reason there was this strange sensation of the two experienced soldiers from different species eyeing each other as if sizing one another for a potential squabble later on. If he could think of a reason, it'd probably because Admiral Ender saw Raizex as the son he never had, and Commander Samson seeing him as the most valuable asset in the war against the Sylvons.

"Why don't we use my office instead? It should be safe, as no one is allowed entry unless invited to."

"Good idea!" Raizex answered without giving the woman time to formulate her own reply.

Well, Raizex won this time, much to the displease of Samson since the addition of a Union top brass meant she had to made the debriefing's recording available to the Union and all its associates.

The admiral's office was not too far from where they met one another. With most of the ship's personnel getting themselves busy elsewhere, the three was able to continue without much hassle. "Alright, where do we begin?" Ender asked without preamble. He was feeling liberal enough to let a Human into this classified interview, and so he pretty much tolerated Samson taking out a small camera-like object to be used as her recording device. The young Indoraptor took a few minutes to spy outside the office's door before sliding it shut, "First off, I'll start with the monster's role in this war. A Council assassin we fought previously introduced the beast by way of verbal command. The Sylvon in particular was... how do I put it, having special implants? Regardless, I saw him wearing some sort of communication device. He lowered his head a little bit so he could talk to it. Soon after, the hellbeast came forth. If my surveillance was right, the beast underwent some brutal conditioning to make it faithful and fierce simultaneously" Nodding, the older Indoraptor produced a data-pad to type down Raizex's description.

"Was there only one of the bioweapon or more?" Samson queried.

"Only one, but it's ferociously loyal to the Sylvon," Raizex recalled as best as he could. "The beast was roughly twenty one meters long and six-limbed. Its head was oval-shaped, with three pairs of eyes and a nested mouth like some species of eels back on Earth. Is it venomous? I think so, judging from the shape of its fangs, if not the thing's barbed tail. Signs of medical surgery were all over the creature's body, especially on the top of its head. I assume that's where the Sylvons inserted a kind of synthetic implant to make it respond to the assassin's commands." Much to his gratitude, the office had a whiteboard-like object where he could draw the beast. Using Admiral Ender's writing tools, Raizex drew the beast's head, legs, and tail on the whiteboard, taking a few seconds or two to correct his description of the bioweapon. By evaluating the young one's sketch, both the old lizard and the stoic woman was able to speculate the hellbeast's full form.

"So we are battling a twisted version of mythical wingless dragons here, something huge with ravenous appetite and theoretically venomous if not out-and-out infectious?" The commander probed for more information, while the admiral kept his focus on his data-pad.

"More like a demon out of religious texts according to my perspective," the admiral quipped. He stood closer to Raizex to observe the drawings.

"I'm not sure how much people within our Imperium are still religious or spiritualist. But aside from that, what else can you tell?"

"You need to shoot it at its eyes," the skirmish in the abandoned bunker was still vivid enough for Raizex to reminisce, "You could try shooting its body and legs using high-caliber guns and whatnot, but in the end only by shooting the monsters in their eyes can you gain significant ground against them. We've tried sniper rifles and shotguns on our erstwhile hunt; the beast could be knocked down, but it didn't take damage. Not even standard headshot was sufficient to deter it. If you have to battle it inside a building, I'll advise you to bring down the building on them, unless you can damage its brain while disabling its vision at the same time. Oh, while we haven't seen it spitting poison blobs, if the ones on Atlantis do use poison spits as weapons... I don't know, have some antidote ready or evacuate your people to somewhere safer..."

He was not certain whether the admiral said "damn" or "wicked", but the disgusted expression on his face barely hid the fact that Admiral Ender despised the beasts more than he did their makers. Commander Samson, after a while, found herself reliving a memory; the day where she read a report on civilian butchering on Atlantis. Their murderer was never caught, and with each passing day, the reports became even more grisly, detailing victims who were evidently eaten by wild animals or something. Now, the young Indoraptor confirmed the public's speculation; it wasn't just a massacre, but the works of a biologically-engineered organism. If Operative Valzack was telling real facts instead of just spouting madness, then her superiors must be cautioned at all cost. If she had to, she'd have military-grade Artificial Intelligence units be brought in to deal with the situation. If all else failed, orbital bombardment via nuclear missiles would be the last viable option left; the only way to be sure.

Just as the human woman proceeded to vacate the office, Ender spoke up "I heard the Imperium employs AI in its military. Can we trust them?"

"Yes, but only in a small margin," she replied slowly, unsure whether the Union would welcome sentient robots as companions or not, "I believe sending AIs first to search and destroy the bioweapons is a very good solution, but I'll have to procure the authorization before any unit is deployed." The old Indoraptor nodded grimly, accepting that the Union and the Imperium would inevitably unveil their most devastating toys to scare the Council back.

"How long are we from Kepler Beta system, sir?"

"About seventeen days, at most."

Commander Samson took a deep breath as she voiced her thoughts "Very well. Lord Ashford won't like this at all, but I guess the AIs will have to come along. Admiral, can I trust you to unite the Niven and the Agnaktor, and have them with you as we begin Atlantis' liberation? My proposal should be responded in three to four days."

"Sure thing. What of Lieutenant O'Brian? Shall we keep him here or move him into one of your ships?"

"Keep him here, please." the woman said, "Please pardon us should the latest arrangement upsets you, but we are still light years away from the nearest Human-suited hospitals."

"Alright then. If there's nothing else you'd like to share, then I'll have you both dismissed. We've got duties to perform." The admiral concluded the interview, permitting the other two to leave the office while he himself went back to discerning Raizex's sketch. He was a good drawer, Ender admitted.

 **-x-x-x-x-x-**

"Hey buddy."

"Hey."

Looking at the restroom's mirror, Raizex, who tried to recollect his thoughts after all that transpired, could see Vion's reflection stretching his neck from the restroom's door. He looked absolutely stressed, or maybe he just recently woke up from his sleep, either way suggested the frazzled sniper required some medicine... or proverbial 'medicine' as the young Indoraptor put it. Raizex decided to entertain his friend, seeing that he, too, needed somebody to talk to.

"Do you have some time to chat? Just between you and me." Raizex nodded as he left the restroom. The Indoraptor's longtime comrade led him to a secluded room with a large open window, where the stars in the cosmos and spaceships flying past it could be seen.

Vion wasn't his usual self today as Raizex observed; fidgeting his fingers, looking jumpy rather than composed, not to mention his weary eyes. Was there something wrong? "Why- I mean, what do you have in mind?" Raizex started in friendly tone. Vion's response, to his confusion, was in mortified attitude.

"I want to apologize, that's all."

"Apologize? Why? As far as I know, you've done nothing wrong." Raizex's confusion rose as high as his eyebrows. From what he remembered, neither of them did an action which humiliated nor threatened anyone among them. No blatant insults, if Raizex remembered correctly, no unhealthy rivalry, not even physical confrontation that resulted in their relationship breaking apart. "If it's something you said or did in the past, don't worry. I've already forgiven you. You no longer owe me anything, buddy."

Vion, on the other hand, disagreed with him. "Yes, I do. Back then, on the colony, where all went to hell. We should've stick together down there, struggle side by side, never leave the other's back exposed, when the invaders came in rows and rows of brutal legionnaires. We are friends, right? Friends stand side by side, not standing or fighting on their own. I saw you more than once, during our service time on the colony, ranting by yourself how you despised your assigned compatriots so much so that you don't care what'll happen to those people." Wait, so Vion knew about his friend's utter hatred toward all those imbecile people; the brainless Tough Guy, the selfish Loner Guy, the vulgar Goth Chick, and the insufferable Smart Guy? If that's the case, then he really should have tried to save the lonely Raizex from getting close to the brink of insanity! But... in retrospect, the sniper had also suffered from the ineptitude of Raizex's commanding officer, who put him in charge of inexperienced soldiers as well, so why put the blame on him? It's not right!

"Umm... you do?" the young Indoraptor asked carefully. He had to know whether or not he offended his friend's feelings. Vion nodded, a regretful look passed in his eyes, "And still am, Raizex! I see it in your eyes; you're angry, drained, and hurt. You're so lonely, just like me, surrounded by random weirdoes yet feeling isolated at the same time. You, me, and Rivea have been doing all we could to stand against the alien invaders ever since the beginning, even as far as bending the laws too many times to do so. I know you're hurt emotionally, because it pains me to have our long partnership being abruptly torn apart by incompetent commanding officers! You know me; I'm the diplomatic talker of us three, right? I could've..."

"Buddy, everything's alright. I'm not furious at you or anything." The sheer awkwardness of the situation weighted heavily on the young one's conscience. He couldn't bear seeing his best friend gibbering about how sorry he was over something he didn't do.

"No, you don't understand! What I was trying to say is-" The sniper started again.

But the young one decided Vion had spoken more than enough. Holding his hand up, Raizex shared his thoughts to the sniper, "I- look, Vion, I appreciate your company, really I do. But why bring this up? We're out of Shangri, now. There's no need to be mad about it. What's done is done. What's done... will be done. All we could do is to be prepared to tackle tomorrow's challenges, whatever it might be." He then hugged his best friend and wrapped his arm around Vion's shoulders, a sign that he's on his way to recover from the traumatic experience on the colony world. Much to his delight, Vion appreciated the gesture by hugging him back tighter.

"Heh, you don't look like the type to let go of the past so easily."

"Believe me, my dad and grandfather did something that earned them public mistrust for a long time. My mom once told me, we either move on with our lives or let others drown us with their snide remarks. And I choose the former." The two of them gave soft headbutt to each other as they left the room, back to the mess hall where Rivea surely could be found sampling the ship's food, or at least that's what Vion told himself. "Be glad, by the way. I finally have you back! No more masochistic guys or slutty freaks or whatever! Just you, me, and our lovely friend Rivea; the best kind of threesome," he finished with a giggle.

Right. The three jovial Indoraptors who got themselves in many adventures, no matter how trivial or boring it might be, was a really awesome threesome. Not even Sharku's hellbeasts were capable of separating them.

Maybe, just maybe, once the joint fleet arrived in Imperium Space, the trio would come face-to-face with the assassin again, who'd probably rant about why the three lizards still haven't died yet.


	17. Chapter 17

**Bloodbath (Part 3)**

 _Indoraptor Year 38_ _2_ _,_ _August 28th_ _,_ _Kepler Beta system (Imperium Space)_ _..._

Two weeks and a half.

Raizex patiently counted the number of days the combined fleets of the Indoraptor Union, the Human Imperium, and the Niven Compact had spent in order to reach Imperium Space, hoping that they weren't late to stop the invasion. Two weeks and a half passed, and he always felt the warp drives of the spaceships were slow as snails.

By the time they finally arrived, they were greeted by a barrage of garbled SOS signals.

Additional onboard undertakings to have those signals cleared revealed how the colonists of the planet Atlantis were still holding out against the invaders, once in a while sending SOS messages to the Imperium's internet network, desperately calling for help. It's just that time was running short for them, and for each passing day, more refugee holdouts had gone dark. Everybody gossiped to each other debating what really happened there... but for those who knew, the truth was far more terrifying.

Now the colony was down to five safe zones, and even then they too were under the threat of permanent cessation. The joint fleet was currently rigged to make them fly faster as the ships entered the system with a yellow-white star.

From the distance, the dark void appeared full of debris randomly floating by, that or space mines were spread around by one of the war's participant. The joint fleet's caution turned into despondent gaze once all hands onboard realized the debris were actually spaceship remains, some of which were easily identifiable as Imperium-owned ships. Other parts of the debris came from marauder ships owned b the Sylvon Council. Even though there were more ruined Sylvon ships than Human ships, the fact that the Imperium's currently stationed fleet over Atlantis was in battered shape was enough to convince the captains and admirals of the joint fleet on how dire the situation was.

To draw the parallel between the attack on Shangri and this planet, the prior invasion saw the Sylvons heading straight for the colony, with plenty of fleet power and a great number of foot soldiers. In this case, the enemy resorted to hit-and-run attacks from multiple directions, scattering the Human's military fleet by luring them into a long game of cat and mouse. By the time the Humans became conscious of their irrationality, the lured fleets raced all the way back to Kepler Beta system, only to find the enemy laying out their groundside invasion at the present time. Knowing how precious the colony was to the Imperium as a whole, the fleets couldn't resort to orbital bombardment for fear of destroying vital buildings and assets they already had on the planet.

Furthermore, reports suggested that the Sylvons didn't even expended all of their troops; most of them simply stood back and watch as their living bioweapons rampaged throughout the colony.

From _USV Stegodon's_ observation deck, Operatives Raizex Valzack and Vion Hyperion stared into the void, scanning the surrounding battle wreckage with sharp slit eyes.

"We're late, aren't we?"

"No, we're not. The ugly mollusks just happen to start a little too early."

"What if we run into more of those... things again?"

"What if we choose to hide up here instead? The assassin must be arrogantly expecting us to let our brothers and sisters to die so we can hide ourselves. I'm not letting him get that satisfaction."

Vion was undeniably not the first to voice their apprehension on the outlook of planetary warfare, what with the Sylvons no longer hiding their monstrous pets either, but Raizex can't afford to be swayed by the common view of the many, not while the liberation was afoot. To be fair, Raizex was a bit more certain of their likelihood to see through the liberation mission, knowing that the joint fleet was bolstered by many species. For example, the Nivens were very riled up upon discovering how the Sylvon Council's gory campaign was done by hiring guerrilla forces and letting loose 'a _poor excuse of an army_ ', referring to the Council's tactic of producing cloned battle thralls. Hundreds if not thousands of the avian species' skillful warriors volunteered themselves to reinforce the combined fleet's strength.

The Agnaktors, tired of not doing anything remarkably useful since the start of the conflict, reached an agreement where their Republic would give the ones fighting on the front line some valuable resources and proficient hackers.

The Humans, quite astoundingly, shifted their public attitude on extrasolar aliens and the influence they had on Human society. The latest political rage on the parallel Earth was of cooperative partnership rather than xenophobic patriotism, and calls to form an interstellar federation were forwarded by many political factions to safeguard Human interests from anyone who wished to do harm to mankind.

"So... what was the objective again?" Vion asked to divert the conversation.

"We Indoraptors will land at the same spot with the Nivens, somewhere between a power grid complex and a mining network, while the Humans will go directly to the colony's capital city. From there, we'll sneak around to get into enemy command base. I heard the Humans will deploy a set of portable ripper autocannon or whatever guns they've got in their stash."

"Will there be some assistance from the colonists? I mean, we've never been there, and if we could help it, we better not go in there blind, especially if we have no choice but to sneak through the mines."

"The Republic at present had their hackers blending in among us, so yeah, there'll be assistance." The young Indoraptor wasn't exactly sure how there could be mining network on an oceanic planet, even more so when he saw the charred Atlantis from the observation deck. 95% or more of the colony world was water albeit the color was brighter than he thought; the visible landmasses were mostly archipelagos, whereas the biggest continent on the planet was barely larger than Australia (if he got the name appropriately).

Having seen enough, the two Indoraptors left the deck. There were about to enter the ship's vacated mess hall when a voice perked their interest "There you are. I've been looking for you!"

"The man's awake," Vion mumbled as they turned around to greet Lieutenant O'Brian. Bruised and unsteady as he was, Luke was apparently given some freedom to walk around the ship and talk to anyone he wished. The bandages wrapped all over his body were no longer as plenty as they used to be; only the right side of his head, his upper torso, and his left leg were still wrapped in fresh bandages. Luke was noticeably limping as he came up to the two lizards. He must've realized the Indoraptors were glancing every few seconds to his bad leg, so he braced his body against a wall to try to look better. "I'm fine. Really, I am," Luke said, projecting a positive mood apart from the throbbing pain on his bandaged knee and calf bone. He knew he couldn't risk worsening his condition.

"No, you're not. You can't go anywhere with that leg. Even if the doctors hand you over some painkillers you won't pull the mission off for too long," Raizex growled. The guy was barely steady at all and he suggested going straight into battle like this?!

"Well, I don't need to hear that from you too! Those are my people down there, and they have to know how to beat the bioweapons! If anybody can come up with some mad strategy to eliminate them, it's us. As in you two, your other friend, and me!" Luke protested. He probably voiced the same thoughts to his attending doctors only for them to dismiss his ideas.

"No can do, dude. Look at yourself! You're still in the healing stage!"

"I don't care! My people... Those who we've sworn to protect are dying on the colony world. I can't just... sit here and do nothing-"

"I'm sorry, but do you possess some sort of death-wish or something?" Vion interjected.

"Ugh... how do I say this? Long story short, I'm not trying to seek out mortal perils right now, but..."

Raizex, disbelieving the Human's tenacity, shared looks with Vion. Whatever struck this guy must be quite bad, if his desire to participate in ground combat despite his debilitating injuries was of any indication. What was the correct term again? Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder? Regardless, Raizex didn't see Luke's tenacity as a good thing. Either from seeing first-hand how devastating the invasion on the Union's colony was or from the duel between the four soldiers versus the Sylvon's abominable pet, Lieutenant O'Brian was reportedly having nightmares, or so Raizex heard from the ship's crews.

Stepping close enough to see eye to eye with the Human, Raizex spoke "Look, you're not my superior so you can't tell us what to do. But I'm not your superior either, so I'm unable to give you orders. But if you insist on coming along, don't expect me to bear the burden of your death and I will not have others blaming me for it. Do you agree or not?" While he recognized the futility of his words, Raizex nonetheless chose to warn the Human of his possible fate instead of wrestling him down. Luke, on the other hand, kept his gaze as a sign of his unwavering determination. The lieutenant wouldn't let the mollusk bastards slaughtered his people, even though he had to drag his useless leg across the battlefield.

A few moments later, Luke lowered his sight. "Okay, yeah. I get it. I... better get some rest. Better give myself some time to heal."

At his offer, Vion assisted the lieutenant in walking back to the medical bay. With the two gone for the moment, Raizex pulled out his eraphone, typing a quick message for his mother and Lyra. Should the upcoming skirmish took a turn for the worse, he figured his girlfriend and mother would need a closure.

 **-x-x-x-x-x-**

 _Indoraptor Year 38_ _2_ _,_ _August 30th_ _,_ _Atlantis (Kepler Beta system), planet side battleground_ _..._

Briny air saturated in noxious smoke.

Raizex and his teammates were expecting the air to be cooler instead of humid, but with the planet's surface being blanketed with fiery smoke from countless battles, it's hard to tell whether the temperature was that uncomfortable to begin with or simply a side effect from environmental poisoning by the Sylvon raiders.

Raizex and most of the Indoraptors wore medium weight armor suits, with their armaments comprised mostly of grenades, high-caliber guns and certain types of melee weapons which possessed high piercing power. The reasoning behind this was that, one hour ago, Human foot soldiers who managed to land first on the colony immediately found a number of corpses belonging to the bioweapons. They reported how the creatures were dead from massive head injury, proving that Raizex was correct in advising the necessity of concentrated assault on their heads. Sadly whoever brought down the beasts was nowhere to be seen. The scouting soldiers had no optimism of his or her survival, however; gnawed bloody limbs scattered across the area painted a bleak prospect in the near future.

The young Indoraptor speculated the monsters and their handlers withdrew down the mines, seeing that the nearest colonists' settlements were virtually intact, with zero casualties involved.

At present, Raizex's platoon consisted of several hundred Humans, Nivens, Agnaktors, Mildari, and Indoraptors arranged into teams of five to seven personnel. Raizex found himself quite unnerved at first, but he kept his unease as low as he could at the sight of humanoid robots ( _correction: Artificial Intelligence units_ ) serving alongside their Human masters. Their sleek metallic shells were tailored to mimic Human appearance to the fullest and were proficient in multispecies interaction thanks to complex processor chips inside their heads.

From the start of the mission, soon after his transport shuttle completed its landing just outside the colony's energy grid installation, Raizex picked Vion and Rivea as his immediate teammates, not wanting a repeat of his experience back in Shangri. Xivena joined soon after departing his transport shuttle, joined by a combat AI titled Unit 47.

"Greetings, Indoraptor friends. I will accompany your team for the duration of this assignment. My designation is Unit 47; please refer to me as such."

"Nice to meet you too, Unit 47." Well, seemed like the Ai was friendly enough for Raizex to be at ease.

"Allow me to give you a brief detail concerning Atlantis' mining network," said Unit 47 as the team joined the rest of the platoon on their march, "The network was established in Imperium Year 2160 and consists of three different levels, each level formerly contained deposits of high-quality minerals. There are four entrances made to access the mines; the one we are entering now is the first entrance, as well as the closest to the colony settlements. This entrance is also close enough to an underground freshwater reservoir. It will be one of our basecamp for the time being so it is strongly advised that you gather everything you need to endure the mission."

"Thank you very much for the info," Xivena replied courteously. Inwardly Raizex thanked him for saving the young Indoraptor from saying anything. He hadn't told his friend this but...

Raizex hated dark underground places!

This place reminded him of old horror movies, where a group of people went down into someplace scary beneath the ground level and got themselves killed off one by one. And all of them were supposed to sneak into enemy territory by traveling past a dark, winding series of tunnels...

Minutes turned into hours as the platoon kept marching into the mines, setting defenses and holdout spots in various reinforced sections of the underground network. Groups of Indoraptors scurried here and there to move objects and equipment. Agnaktors and Humans set up tools and electronic devices with the assistance of their AI units. Nivens and Mildari convened at secluded corners discussing who performed what action as soon as the hiding marauders were spotted. Raizex and his friends had to agree, they've never witnessed so many individuals from all manner of species to coordinate things so smoothly, despite lingering discomfort from every species toward one another.

Checking the clock on his eraphone, Raizex noted that the Imperium colony must be approaching night time. There wouldn't be any more chance to turn back.

One last preparation saw Raizex debating whether to take his shotgun along or trade it with the sniper rifle he felt difficult to wield. He always favored bringing lighter arsenal in mission; therefore the shotgun was his first pick. But then he heard conversation between a tall athletic-looking Human and a scowling Niven, who'd rather bring a high-powered rifle into battle than a rapid-firing assault rifle like the man suggested. Raizex came to remember that his primary target was the bioweapons, not the Sylvons themselves.

Making his mind up, he abandoned his smaller guns in order to carry both the shotgun and the sniper rifle. His glaive would be the last-resort arsenal.

When all was done, an alert was issued to all personnel on the ground. a few dozen Sylvons were detected at the far side on the mines, swiftly transporting what was assumed to be a pack of hellbeasts out of the underground network. A rallying cry was shouted by a Human captain, gaining the combined troops' attention as they trudged in unison through the tunnels.

As they walked, Rivea nudged at his friends while pointing at a large gun being carried by a big muscular Human. "What in the universe is that?"

"Rapid-firing autocannons on tripods, big dino. We find them easier to use and carry around, so we won't have to call the ships in orbit for air support. "

Ah, so that's what the gun is. Looking around him, Raizex could see other Humans having the portable arsenal being shouldered by muscular people like him. The compact collapsible nature of the things allowed them to bring the guns to anywhere they wanted and no additional support was needed, even as they eventually surfaced from the mines. The exit took them to some sort of gorge-like landscape, dotted with steep hills and jagged rocky walls. Manmade bridges were constructed on top of the hills, apparently the product of early Human explorers who found the caves and established a mining company there. The moon orbiting the colony planet gave a little bit of natural illumination, just like the full moon back on Earth.

The surroundings were silent, but from how the felines and the lizards actinG all tense, Raizex knew the Sylvons were not far from there. At a Mildari's cue, all present troops scrambled toward all available positions that could protect them when the alien invaders decided to attack.

Next to him, the big guy and his lookalikes were setting up their portable autocannons. "Yeah, they look awesome and all, but do you think the cannons can bring down big monsters like the Council's pets?"

"I don't know about you, dinosaur, but we always put faith in our fancy techs to do the job right. Now get to your position."

As much as he desired to preach the best possible ways to deal with the mission at hand, Raizex reminded himself of his place and wisely retreated to the higher ground where his sniper companion waited. Rivea and Unit 47 somehow got their hands on one portable cannon and were currently installing it on a safe place. He concentrated his sight searching for nooks or crannies where the hellbeasts might pour out from, all the while waiting for Unit 47 to finish calibrating the mounted guns.

"There!" Vion shouted all of a sudden. Pulling out his own sniper rifle and aiming it at where Vion pointed, Raizex saw a pack of six bioweapons running directly at the joint troops, leading the charge was a hellbeast twice bigger than the one Raizex's team defeated before. That one, screeching incessantly while flailing its nested mouth, had two of its multiple eyes gone, a sign that it won a previous skirmish with someone else.

Raizex heard his mouth uttered a swearword.

The slope they were climbing was fairly even, but jutting rocks dotting the slope served as a two-edge sword; on one hand the bioweapons were significantly slowed down, giving the mounted guns an opportunity to score damage, but whenever the beasts slithered past the jutting rocks, they gained a means of reprieve from the merciless mounted cannons.

No sooner than forty minutes of endless barrage of bullets, one by one the autocannons overheated. AI units swiftly provided quick maintenance procedure in hopes of restarting the guns, but alas, the fleeting moment of inaction gave the monsters ample time to continue climbing the slope. At a Niven's signal, all soldiers had their weapons ready in hand as they assaulted the bioweapons, doing all they could to keep them from moving forward. One by one the beasts fell as they skulls cracked and bled from the simultaneous gunfire, but the big one persistently charging forward, shrugging off all injuries. Ultimately, the last remaining hellbeast arrived at the soldiers' staging ground, tearing the mounted autocannons off as it thrashed about, injuring as many victims as it could. Almost everyone lost orientation as they struggled to make a dent on the creature's thicker-than-normal scales. In the end, a lone female Mildari threw a grenade at the creature's open maw as it roared; the explosive went off inside its throat, allowing the Mildari and another younger one to finish it by ripping its nested mouth off, killing it for good.

"That... is for the good people you've murdered... you monster," the Mildari growled. "Let your makers know that Qeiryne Vicatix, one of the best huntresses of her species, has defeated you."

Raizex and his comrades were planning to give her a salutation when a louder shriek echoed across the hill.

"Warning! More hostiles are detected! Life signs indicated a mixture of bioweapons and normal enemies!" Unit 47 spoke loudly.

A new pack of the Sylvon's bioweapons were approaching from below the hill, followed by roving gangs of marauders crossing the bridge to where the defending soldiers stood. Countless Syvlon raiders brandishing vast array of weaponry ran at their direction with but a solid desire to see the aliens' annihilation. With their forces cut by half from the big one's rampage and the portable autocannons essentially out of commission, it seemed that the end had dawned upon them.

But the fires of determination weren't out yet.

"I am Qeiryne Vicatix, dedicated Mildari huntress, and I hereby offer my life so that all of you may live to fight another day! Do not weep upon my demise, companions! Your victory is not far away now!"

"Units 93, 11, 58, and 30 will provide you one last assistance, ma'am!"

"And the warriors of the Cyran Compact are here with you! Let us ride into battle for glory!"

In the flurry of movement, Raizex noticed with horror how Rivea was no longer on his side. Frantically searching the battlefield, his eyes widened in fear at the sight of his wayward friend charging with the old female Mildari... marching with so much certainty toward his doom. He wanted to join him. He wanted to make sure his wayward friend didn't have to go alone, but the sniper caught his leg and tussled him to the ground, refusing to let another one of his compatriots die. Both gazed in awe and horror as many Nivens and AI units joined the lone Mildari to hold off the invaders... while at the same time destroy the bridge.

Destroy the bridge.

For a few minutes there was silence, the battle over the bridge rang on their ears. Then, just as when all was lost to the defenders, the bridge exploded, taking all of the monsters and their masters with them. Some of the marching defenders survived with various injuries, some others were lost...

But in all that, Raizex could faintly hear a feminine voice cried in despair.

"NO! NO! YOU CAN'T LEAVE US LIKE THIS!"

 **-x-x-x-x-x-**

 _Indoraptor Year 38_ _2_ _,_ _October 1st_ _,_ _Atlantis (Kepler Beta system), ruined enemy base_ _..._

The tide had shifted in the allied forces' favor.

The assassin, Naja, continuously identified by the Indoraptors with his last name Sharku, found himself counting the losses suffered by the Council's armies. There should've been over 4,000 foot soldiers under the Councilors' payroll, equipped with the best war toys they could get their hands on, combined with 5 dozen cloned soldiers to serve as cannon fodders to the enemy, and let's not forget the roving packs of Council-approved genetically-engineered war beasts which served as the main shock troops and a means to dispose of any prisoners of war. Ever since three weeks ago, the war should've led them to victory over the fledgling races beneath them.

What followed afterward was the biggest mistake the entire Sylvon species ever made in history.

Five different races banded together and pooled all their resources, all their armies to fulfill one ultimate goal; the obliteration of the Council of Akantorin. The Indoraptors and Humans provided troops rivaling the military prowess of the Council's best combatants, supplanted by the bird-like Nivens whose 'knights' easily mowed down their opponents in minutes. The crimson Agnaktors donated vast sums of money, resources, and processing power; meanwhile the cat-like Mildari sent their best operatives as lone agents to disable key infrastructures of the Sylvon raiders. The Sylvons sowed the seeds of war, and now they were about to witness how those seeds sparked flames of open war in the hearts of all they've wronged. Three weeks of war against them produced no outcome except whispers of another slave rebellion which spread like wild firestorm.

The slaves across Council Space must have realized their masters were no longer as strong as they used to be.

Naja, or Sharku, examined the losses of the Council's army and found that two third of the army's total numbers were lost to the five aliens. Less than 1,000 foot soldiers survived yesterday's battle, and the rest of the clone soldiers were forcibly sent back to Akantorin to quell the growing unrest amongst the slaves.

If he had to pick which was the worst, it'd be the later. All of the Council's loyalists recognized the danger of slave rebellion, aware that the loss of cheap workforce they've grown accustomed to would bring down their economy. Lately he heard another grim news; the unsettling fact that the bioweapons were no longer subservient to the Sylvons, and were likely running amok unrestrained across the formerly-occupied colony world. It would be a matter of time before the Imperium retaliated by way of setting the bioweapons against their masters.

The assassin was plotting his escape from the doomed mission just as he heard a strangely familiar voice "Hi again! Do you miss me?"

It was Raizex, one of the Indoraptors whom he fought in the Union's abandoned underground fortress. "YOU! You are supposed to be dead!" Naja screamed in utter disbelief. He's losing the war and most of the more seasoned leaders were no longer around to lead the Council's troops and to protect him. The last thing he wanted was for a mere black lizard to end the Council's campaign in Imperium Space.

"Basically, yeah. In reality? No, I'm not dead, and I'll be damned if I let you dance around with your little dogs." The confident Indoraptor strutted forward with his glaive in hand, ready to duel the tentacled alien up close and personal. Naja stealthily brandished his engraved daggers, preparing for a chance to strike first when a movement caught his attention.

Behind Raizex, a female Mildari and an Agnaktor followed him into the ruined military holdout. The Sylvon assassin was well aware of who the red reptilian was; Xivena, an Agnaktor Republic agent tasked with interspecies cooperation, which gave him access and authorization to operate within Union Space.

The Mildari, however, confused him a little, although the painted marking on her face reminded him of another Mildari not too long ago. "Sorry 'bout your pets by the way. We finally discovered some good techniques to keep them from waking up ever again," Raizex said, earning him the Sylvon's attention.

"Yes. Now that we are here, we might as well assist those who left us to the stars to... rest with no trouble," said the female Mildari with an audible hiss. Naja went back to study her appearance from afar.

Upon inspecting her facial features, the Sylvon assassin became aware of who she was; Karyna Varytix, daughter of Qeiryne Vicatix, the Mildari huntress who sacrificed her own life alongside many other allied troops to bring down a bridge on top of a horde of Council war beasts, giving the aliens greater incentive to move into Sylvon-occupied territory. The bioweapons' loss became a boost to their morale.

"You... I think I remember who you are, if your... tribal markings speak the truth. Are you here to deliver vengeance on me? Or are you here simply for the sake of drama?"

"Believe me, killing you and leaving your dead body to rot would be the least of my concern," the Mildari, Karyna, drew what looked like a short sword with a pendulum-shaped edge; it must be what a sword was to her species. Xivena made the same gesture, unsheathing combat knives similar in size to that of the assassin's. "I hereby declare that you, the Sylvon terrorist who mercilessly massacred innocent people, be captured and trialed for your crimes. Do not try to resist, terrorist, or your punishment will be... more severe." Karyna stated, taking up position next to Raizex, their weapons pointed at the Slyvon.

Not amused at all, Naja snorted as he readied himself for the impending duel, positioning his daggers accordingly. "Hah, we are the Council of Akantorin. We are far above you, filthy aliens good only for subjugation. Do you seek death that much, girlie? Then let me give you a taste of it."

With a sinister smirk, he launched forward, his daggers slashing wild like a cyclone. Xivena proceeded to block the attack as the Mildari rolled to evade it, followed by Raizex making circling and stabbing moves to try and caught the assassin off guard. The spinning attack wasn't exactly useful, as Karyna noted, but it did provided openings for her to lunge forward and engage the enemy for several seconds. How unfortunate, she thought, her attacks didn't actually deal damage as Naja continued to block her sword, but he was distracted enough for Raizex to keep attacking with his usual moves. Did it once and then the Sylvon adjust his stance to carry on fighting unimpeded. Did it twice and now Naja targeted Raizex almost exclusively, doing his best to kill him fast, coercing the Indoraptor to combine his standard glaive attacks with clawing gestures and kicking, despite his awareness that Naja could slash his legs off at any time. With a flash of movement from Xivena, resembling someone giving an uppercut punch to the assassin's lower jaw, Raizex was able to execute a spin-and-stab attack the third time; this time actually stunning the Sylvon long enough for Karyna to kick him squarely in the chest area, sending the opponent sliding on the ground.

"Huh, I guess two of us have to engage him at the same time," mumbled Raizex as he caught his breath.

"I know, but the duo must also use different techniques as to keep him from effectively countering us," Xivena agreed with him. The cuts to his armor were nothing compared to the possibility that the Sylvon was going to be enraged.

He was half-correct, as it turned out; coughing up blood, Naja rose from the ground, not quite defeated yet but cautious enough to hide his rising infuriation. He slowly circled the battle arena, carefully eyeing his opponents to find weak spots, conveniently forgetting how the three aliens before him also searched him for more weakness areas. Raizex noticed the back of Naja's shoulder was bleeding but not too much. Perhaps a possible spot for him to add more damage?

"Hmpf, I was wrong to underestimate you," the Sylvon said, "while it's true that all of you are highly talented, I am sensing a nagging foresight that at least one of you will have to die for me to truly perish by your hands."

"Why do you hold faith over prophecy, anyway? Your people don't give a damn about anything but measurable wealth," Raizex snarled.

"You'll be surprised to find out what else we're capable of," the assassin shrugged, launching himself for another fit of frenzied attack. Karyna, correctly predicting how the Sylvon always gestured his attacks in horizontal motion first, intentionally ran straight at the assassin and slid past him, scoring a strike at Naja's legs, tripping him over. Raizex then joined in, using mainly vertical slashes and ground-stabbing moves to disarm him. Much to his annoyance, Naja was more than skillful enough to firmly grasp his daggers, now using slower but steadier slashes to discourage the three aliens from getting too close. Once or twice he and Karyna combined kicks and headbutts to stun Naja, but when they found out their hit after hit failed to land the Sylvon on the ground again, they resorted to fighting the assassin shoulder-by-shoulder. Good thing, too, as Naja began incorporating 'unfair' tactics such as kicking up dirt to distract the opponent's eyesight or knocking over breakable tall objects so they'd be trapped underneath. The Sylvon let his evil grin became visible; he observed how his opponents lost concentration little by little, giving him more advantage.

As the Indoraptor and the Mildari were caught up in the heat of battle, Xivena analyzed the current state of affairs. The three had wasted too much time attempting to arrest the Sylvon terrorist. If the terrorist didn't die now, they wouldn't have another chance.

Maybe, from the Sylvon's standpoint, he expected either Karyna or Raizex to bite the dust and become a martyr figure. But Xivena knew Naja's consideration was pointed more at them and not him.

The Agnaktor was never a proficient soldier, but he could buy his companions time.

It's now or never.

Upon seeing Raizex and Karyna reeling from exhaustion, Xivena charged forward. His combat knives danced in gleaming reflection as he ran forth and welcomed his fate. Naja, recovering from his daze a lot faster than anyone thought, saw a flash of movement. He looked up just in time to see Xivena closing in with an alarming speed. He's going to kill him! No way was this going to happen!

A second flash of movement and a flurry of wind later, Xivena struck one knife on the Sylvon's wounded shoulder, injuring the assassin.

But in a moment of carelessness, the Agnaktor felt a feeling of sharp pain. Looking down, he acknowledged his mistake; the Sylvon assassin's right hand pierced his dagger into his chest. Dizziness began to creep up his mind as he listened to the horrified roar of his Indoraptor friend. He shouldn't have roared... he shouldn't have wasted time... Xivena successfully bought his companions time, and they must not waste it by yelling or crying...

"Hah, hahahah! What am I looking at here?" Naja's smug voice escalated into disturbing laughter, his hand twisted the dagger deeper into the Agnaktor's body, "One of you has decided to meet his maker! Do you think this is martyrdom, hah?! Do you think lesser aliens like you understand the concept of self-sacrifice and heroism?! No... Oh definitely not! You are just like our battle thralls, insignificant and hollow in the grander scale of things! Do you have last words to say as I chop you to pieces, alien?"

With a struggle, Xivena lifted his eyes to meet the cold heartless eyes of the mollusk assassin. "Yes. You really should not grip your dagger any longer."

A glint of confusion passed over the Sylvon's eyes for a few seconds, not quite comprehending the meaning behind the phrase. Before Raizex and his Mildari comrade could step closer to separate the two, before Naja could move away from his victim, Xivena swiped his free combat knife at the Sylvon's hand grasping the dagger in his chest. Naja was about to stab the alien's head when his right hand erupted in a burst of blood and pain. Looking down, he witnessed how Xivena had cut his hand off without his consent.

"NOOOO! THIS IS INSULT! YOU BASTARD! WHAT HAVE YOU CURSED ALIEN DONE TO ME?! WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?! I HAVE LOST MY HAND BECAUSE OF YOU! YOU DESPICABLE WORTHLESS ALIENS WILL NEVER DEFEAT ME, NEVER!"

Naja continued to shout expletives as he ran away seeking refuge, still cradling his bleeding arm stump. As Karyna held the enraged Raizex back and reminded him of his friend, Xivena fell kneeling on the ground, pulling out the assassin's dagger but made no move to stop the bleeding.

"Xivena, buddy... just... hold on alright?!" Raizex scrambled to apply first aid on his downed friend, desperate to keep him alive. With the Mildari's help they laid him on the ground while Raizex checked his companion's gaping wound.

But the crimson lizard wouldn't let him. As he found Raizex's hand and gripped it tightly, he coarsely whispered "No need to... you don't need to. You have... duty to fulfill... An enemy to chase... a family to go back to..." Xivena let out a couple of coughing, blood poured from his mouth as Raizex finally ceased to provide first aid assistance. Karyna knelt next to him, offering her respect to the fallen comrade.

"We have lost... good people today... but remember! We still have more... living friends... and those who require our companionship. Don't grieve for me, for our struggle... is not over..."

"Remember your duty... remember what you fight for..." Xivena said between coughs, "It'll keep you alive even at the darkest of times..."

And with a final breath, the Agnaktor laid his head on the dirty ground, finally at rest.

He didn't know how long he sat there, staring at the Agnaktor's unmoving body, nor did he knew that the sky darkened as soft rain started to fall from the sky. The young Indoraptor wanted to cry, or scream, or claw the ground, but he was motionless, not understanding what he wanted to do. All he could recall was Karyna reciting some kind of prayer from her species.

 _Be at peace now, warrior,_

 _May your kindness and loyalty be celebrated forever,_

 _As you embark on a journey to the other side,_

 _We offer our eternal gratitude for you, warrior,_

 _For your faithfulness to safeguard the light,_

 _And defend the innocent from the darkness,_

 _Be at peace now, warrior,_

 _And may we meet again across the infinite sea._

Raizex let a minute of silence passed as he noticed the Mildari stopped reciting her prayer. To be honest, he was interested with what she recited, as his comms' translator software failed to translate the words she had spoken.

"May I know the meaning behind your speech?" Raizex asked in soft, monotone voice.

"It's one of our oldest prayers to the fallen," Karyna replied gingerly, "we offered them to those who fell in battle doing something noble and remarkable. His Republic may forget him in a few years to come, but I know you and those he trusted as true partners won't. We can't afford to lose sight of who we are and what we strive for."

Raizex simply nodded. Standing up, he let the drizzle wash over his head, tail, and stained armor suit. He ought to alert the others, to let them be informed of what had happened to Xivena. He already lost Rivea Vascon and Luke O'Brian from this war; he must not allow the war to break him, lest the enemy took notice and goad him into self-destruction.

"Do you want me to carry his body back?"

"No, that's fine. I'll do it." answered Raizex. The decisiveness in his voice convinced Karyna that the Indoraptor would be a strong ally in the future. She waited as her comrade gently lifted the deceased friend in his arms and walked back cautiously to the colony's command center side by side with her. Unit 47 might be able to notify the Republic's governor about this.


	18. Chapter 18

**No Evil Deeds Goes Unpunished**

 _Indoraptor Year 38_ _2_ _,_ _October 31st_ _,_ _Union Space, somewhere in Nabradia system_ _..._

Damned alien!

Filthy scoundrel aliens who never appreciated true greatness!

Naja had been shifting back and forth between his usual composed self and random bouts of furious ranting over the loss of his primary hand. With his physical condition being significantly handicapped, the Council's trusted assassin had to delegate his tasks to some of his underlings, who might or might not be highly competent themselves.

The assassin was in his private cabin on his spaceship, mulling over the Council's defeat at the hands of the allied forces. For the last three weeks, the joint fleets had pursued the Sylvon fleets across Imperium and Union-owned territories. The failed invasion at both Shangri and Atlantis became a serious drawback when the higher-ups back on Akantorin couldn't afford to supply the war commanders more ground troops nor did they produce more ships. When asked why, the spymistress, occasionally joined by Councilor Astrax, merely gave him weekly updates on how the lower caste of their species had instigated a new rebellion. This time the Council was discernibly losing the empire-wide conflict, hemorrhaging money and manpower to quell the widespread chaos.

The ship's crew didn't talk about it openly, but they all knew Naja was begging, actually begging, for the Council's shadow organization to aid the marauders to turn the tide of war back in their favor. They were in dire need of reinforcement, funding, or Intel, anything to keep the Council's hired goons and special soldiers from losing the interstellar battle. Heck, if they had to the Council should consider searching for primitive aliens to turn into vassal races, or maybe allies who shared the same mindset with the Sylvons.

The spymistress' rejection, no matter how polite she said it, was all it took for the assassin to degenerate into grim psychological dilemma.

"Get the marauders and their troops somewhere where they can create diversion..."

"No, no, we need they to attack the allied fleets from behind..."

"Wait, they should probably try to split the alien fleets apart, lure them into pointless pursuit..."

"Forget it; a suicide attack would be better at discouraging the aliens..."

All Sylvons on board the spaceship, the pilot included, found it unnerving to hear their commanding officer rambling ceaselessly to himself in quiet places. Murmurs often faded into distrusting glances whenever Naja was seen walking amongst his remaining men, as if they were scared Naja would suddenly went berserk and tore them apart. The Humans cleverly ordered their sentient automatons to wage psychological warfare against the Council, spreading memetic publicities to demoralize the Sylvons as payback for all they've done, lowering the crews' morale further.

Plans were drafted to have the mentally unstable assassin spaced in a deliberate accident, but so far nobody dared to make the move. It'd be a matter of time before someone had to die.

The ship and its last escorting corvettes were doing their best to evade the Union's military fleets. the Indoraptors certainly had better warp drives in their spaceships, as they managed to seek out the marauder fleets, systematically gunning them down, one flotilla at a time. Only this ship and a mere handful of corvettes evaded the grisly fate their comrades suffered at the hands of the black lizards. But despite their best efforts, the Sylvons had their days numbered. Soon the entire might of the Union, united with their allies, would be upon the last of the invaders and some were considering the unlikely option to declare unconditional surrender, that was, if the Indoraptors agreed to accept their surrender.

According to the ship's XO, four days had passed as they tried to navigate the Nabradia system. The Council's Intel seemed to list a continental planet orbiting the star system as belonging to the Union, but so far there were no sign of any habitable planet... that or they were just looking at the wrong direction. If the system they were in was indeed part of the Indoraptors' territory, they better get out fast because every second they wasted in the system gave the Grand Fleet more time to catch up to them.

The ship's pilot was thinking to get something to drink when the alarms went off. That could only mean one thing; the Union's Grand Fleet was here.

Will they all made it in one piece?

"All hands, get to your stations, brace for hostile encounter! May the Council have mercy upon us..."

None of the crew were religious in any way, but as soon as the energy weapons from the hostile ships began piercing into the hull, they all recited prayers in all kinds.

 **-x-x-x-x-x-**

 _Indoraptor Year 38_ _2_ _,_ _November 3rd_ _,_ _Shrike (Nabradia system), uncharted mountain region_ _..._

Something chased the Sylvons.

Something so big it defied the known laws of physics.

No one, not even Naja, recalled precisely what happened. All they could share with each other was that the Grand Fleet sent their nimble fighter ships in conjunction with their destroyer ships. The surviving engineering personnel declared the engines to be heavily busted. They won't be going anywhere for days, and with the comms system having to be repaired, they'd be stuck there for quite longer. Hunger and sickness would surely swept in and put them all in mortal danger.

It had been three days since the assassin's ship crash-landed on this weird garden world. The Council wrote it as a 'continental planet' in their database. They never said anything about how or why the planet was... abnormal. The plants were so colorful, so wildly divergent in many bright colors it made one or two personnel suffer a slight photosensitive seizure. The animals were even stranger. They behaved as if they owned higher-than-average intelligence; as if they know who the Sylvons were every time the critters stared at them. Overall, the lifeforms on Shrike were mostly inedible and the chemicals the Sylvons could use to turn the cooked fruits and plants into a form of palatable mush were running low.

That routine continued for three days straight. Now whoever still lived found themselves scurrying past nooks and crannies trying to buy a little more time before they all fell from exhaustion... or predation. The humongous beasts... by the stars, how did the Indoraptors kept those things under their thumbs after so long?

It's as if the planet itself was a natural home for the titanic monsters, and the Indoraptors just happened to keep it neat and tidy.

It all occurred in during sunrise. Some of the crews were walking away from the makeshift camp, wanting to scout the neighboring area for edible animals. At first, contact between them and the ship's captain was well. Then the radio went silent for fifteen minutes at first, followed by short but frequent tremors on the ground. Half an hour passed, and there was still no notification whether the Sylvons who went hunting ever found something to eat. After two hours of silence, with no news from the two members whatsoever. a few crewmates were getting fed up with it and prearranged a means to search and rescue the missing members. An argument broke out between those who supported them and those who backed Naja's instruction, which basically stated that everyone must be in close proximity to the makeshift basecamp. It might escalated into a fistfight in due course had only a monstrous abomination didn't rear its head first.

A reptilian creature of massive length and proportion, with lumps of fresh meat dangling from its jaws.

The remains of the two missing Sylvons.

The creature, the titanic serpent, shrilled as it lunged toward the bickering Sylvons. The assassin's memory was fresh enough to recall how the giant monster caught the downed ship between its long jaws and twisted the ship with its long body into scraps of bent metals. Unsatisfied, the serpent threw it to the ground, but by that time the Sylvons were already on the run.

But it's not like the scaly titan was letting them got away freely.

One by one the crews were devoured by the great serpent, either because they were running too slowly or the titanic monster doused them in blobs of venom or whatever it was. No matter what they did to it, from shooting it with their guns to blowing off sections of any rocky cliffs they came across, nothing stopped the titanic serpent from catching up to them. And every time it did, one of them were lost to it insatiable appetite. Six short legs only fastened the monster's rough body as it slithered up and down the rocky mountain regions, eagerly chasing after its fleeing prey. At least once every ten minutes, the serpent would slam its tail to the cliff side hard enough to generate a small earthquake, disorienting the mollusks for a few seconds.

Now they were down to five people... and through a series of very unfortunate events, the assassin got himself separated from the others! How could this be? How could they be divided from one another while the serpent was kind of one mile away from their location?

Essentially, he was literally single-handed at the time. Most people knew that mountain climbing was difficult and physically tasking when one was lacking a functional hand to grapple the protruding rocks on a cliff.

So when Naja was struggling to navigate a narrow treacherous path on a cliff side, he forgot for a split second that his right arm ended on a stump. He carelessly tried to use it to hang on a crevasse, but as he remembered his own folly, the stumped arm slipped, and the rest of his body came too shortly after. As his body fell to the ground far underneath him, rolling on bent landings along the way, Naja's mind wandered away, recalling every action he had gotten himself into. From the initial recruitment by the Miralis organization, the classified tasks he did under the spymistress' orders, the exercises he scheduled to train the cloned foot soldiers, and his involvement in the war, all flashed across his eyes as his body fell into the gaping maw of the waiting titanic serpent below, fervently gulping down its next prey before it was all set to keep following the last of the invaders.

Really, the serpent didn't have to devour him whole; the spymistress would demand his head on a platter herself in due time.

 **-x-x-x-x-x-**

 _Sylvon Year 2197 (_ _Indoraptor Year 38_ _5)_ _,_ _September 15th_ _,_ _Akantorin (Sylvon Space), Council Chamber_ _..._

Three years.

Three long years, and the Council of Akantorin was on its last legs. Their military fleets and armed forces were scattered to every direction in the void. The empire's economy had collapsed as their money smuggled away and wasted on useless things. The slave labors the ones in power used to sustain the entire species had gone into arduous, unending conflicts which crippled the government as a whole.

Worse, the rebelling slaves now rose up into nomadic gangs of space pirates and drug traders, completely beyond the Council's ability to restrain.

Was that the worse the councilors had to deal with? No, there more; alien fleets had their starbases scuttled by AI robots, their mining stations destroyed and raided, their colonies bombarded as thorough as they could with survivors rounded up as prisoners of war. Their victory over the mollusks was absolutely certain at this rate. And starting from last week, the Indoraptors' Grand Fleet and the Imperium's strongest fleet were putting Akantorin under permanent quarantine, meaning that no one but their troops were free to enter and leave as they please. The councilors were likely to be high on their 'shoot-to-kill' list.

Oh wait, they were already breaching the Council Chamber's gates.

There's no use weeping over what befell them anyway.

The spymistress stood overlooking the fall of her species from the building's balcony. The potted plants placed on the balcony's round corners used to be healthy and fragrant; too bad they became shriveled and dry now. They were neglected, just like all sections inside the compound. The Council Chamber's caretakers fled their posts at the sight of Human troops kicking the building's main gate open, pouring forth like a flood and shooting its security personnel. All who failed to flee quickly was rounded up and taken out, fruitlessly struggling to break free from the automatons' iron grip.

The female Sylvon let out a deep, long sigh. She should've reined her desire to expand aggressively into alien territories. She was supposed to be a shady businesswoman. But who was she but an instrument to her superiors' agenda. The whole Miralis organization was nothing but a tool for the ones in power to express their wishes.

Councilor Astrax brought her a terrifying request not too long ago. At his own wish, Councilor Astrax demanded to be mercy-killed by her last agents; when she uncovered his last will, the spymistress read it to discover how Niven soldiers would feed captured Sylvons to dangerous wild animals back on their homeworld. Maybe the idea was to let the prisoners starve to death, but even this slightly more merciful execution unnerved Astrax enough that he demanded her to sanction his own demise. A poison pill was all it took to end his life.

Added with the Human AIs allegedly vivisecting captured Sylvons without anesthetics and Indoraptors personally executing them via throat biting, and the spymistress wondered if she could have her death at the hands of her agents too. She had her pride after all.

The female's line of thought was shattered when the doors to the balcony slammed open. Trampling through them were groups of Humans, Indoraptors, Mildari, and at least a pair of AI units she assumed would deliver her to their leaders.

"Put your hands where we can see them!"

A tall Human woman barked the order, followed by the soldiers aiming their guns at her head. The spymistress snorted but not making eye contact; if they wanted her dead so badly then they should have bombarded the entire complex. Why bother trying to arrest her if they'd give her a death sentence later on? The gunshots she heard sometime before their arrival on the balcony proved her suspicion; the rest of the councilors were killed. They were likely not presented with a choice to surrender, either.

"Are you deaf, wench?! Put your hands where we can see them, or else!"

This time a male Indoraptor snarled. This time the spymistress made eye contact with him. She could be wrong, of course, but his appearance was... unsettling, as in, she had seen him some time ago but the memory just happened to come back now.

Concentration gradually shifted into shakiness as an older male Indoraptor spoke. She didn't pay attention to the content of his speech, but the female mollusk was more or less aware that this Indoraptor, or someone else if not him, would have her blood spilled on the balcony's tiles. Heh, no wonder, she might as well left them with a "screw-you-message", that way the aliens would still feel disappointment and stress even after they riddled her body with bullets.

"Karyna, do you think we should kill her here or..."

"I'd rather have the interstellar community witnessed her being trialed publicly so they can humiliate her. Then we finish her off."

"I agree. If she's one of the councilors, then she better receive judged appropriately for her crimes against all sapient lives."

"I think we should finish her here and now. But if that's okay with you, I'll back your choice"

"Then the decision has been made. Units 47 and 26, please take the alien into custody."

At this, the spymistress backed down as the robotic servants stepped forward to handcuff her. This was it; there would be no turning back from her choice. The choice she devised as one final act of defiance against those whom she considered unworthy of being friends of the Council of Akantorin. Mimicking how Astrax asked for one of their chemical weapons in the form of small, round capsule full of their equivalent of cyanide, the spymistress produced a tiny container enclosing precisely the same poison pill her acquaintance swallowed. She was so sure of her fall at the hands of their enemies that she decided to carry one herself.

"Do you think you have won?" the female whispered, halting the advancing AI units, "Do you really think your crusade would bring peace to the stars from now on? Maybe it will, but maybe it won't. With us as the cause of your unity being snuffed out of existence, you will have nothing left to do but turn your weapons on each other. You really should have accepted us as your overlord. That way you won't have to argue on which way is the best way of life." The Humans, Indoraptors, and Mildari were unsure of what to do. The robots, however, chose to ignore her and kept approaching. "In the end, you all are as fleeting as we are. None of you are as invincible as you like to believe. My people have been reduced to nothing but space pirates, but mark my words, soon or later their will unite under a great leader and they will reclaim what they have lost at this time and age!"

Unveiling the small container, the spymistress took the poison pill out and hold it before the wary aliens. Some of the Indoraptors made a move to prevent her from consuming it, but they were too late as her hand swiftly delivered the pill to her mouth. "I am Navaria Qun'Zhian of the Miralis Brotherhood, and I have consumed a lethal concoction," the spymistress revealed her name, right before she fell on the floor, convulsing violently as the cyanide-like substance shut her internal organs one by one... until her brain inevitably went inert, ending her life.

Everyone who watched traded looks of confusion. Having used to kill the resisting Sylvons somehow numbed them to the fact that their remaining leader was brave enough to pull such action.

"Okay, now what? What are we going to hand over as evidence?" one of them asked.

"Examine each security camera and have their records pulled out. We'll hand them over to our respective leaders," a Human said, followed by the Mildari soldiers nodding in comprehension. "Also, if any of you happen to come across useful data or resources, don't be shy to take them too."

"So be it. Miss Varytix, help Unit 47 to load her body for extraction. The galaxy needs to be confirmed of her death. Valzack, Hyperion, go help the others take the cameras apart."

"And what will you do then, Admiral?"

"Find something that could give us all closure. I know we all need it," the old Indoraptor said.


	19. Chapter 19

**A Federation is Born**

 _ **HUMAN IMPERIUM ABOUT TO EMBRACE DEMOCRACY**_

 _May 2nd, 2182 (by Adam C. Levin and Riley E. Smith)_

 _A surprising news has emerged from the Imperium's highest authority. Lord Connor Ashford, currently reigning as the Imperium's top governor, has announced two important declarations. Firstly, his intention to reorganize Humanity's administrative system from a semi-dictatorship government into a democratic one where multiple factions can voice their interest in pursuit of a greater goal together. With this in mind, the supreme leader also shared his thoughts on the idea of returning the freedom of expression and opinion to the masses._

 _Quoted from 'The England Times', Lord Ashford elaborated on the nature of the new Human government. He envisioned it to be ruled by a 'Consul' who does the day-to-day administrative job, assisted by a group of 'Ministers' who oversee how the Consul runs the government, and the 'Legislatives' who institute the edicts governing the Human race by taking public aspirations into account._

 _Many reviewers has remarked how this democratic rule the supreme leader spoke of is very similar to the egalitarian ideology once held by the nations on Earth centuries ago._

 _Secondly, Lord Ashford forwarded an invitation to the Mildari Assembly, the Compact of Cyran, the Agnaktor Republic, and most importantly the Indoraptor Union. He wished that all five species be united under the banner of a multispecies federation. The Human supreme leader cited the need to protect mankind and its allies from the terrors of the galaxy. The idea was, Humanity, Nivens, and the Indoraptors will form the bulk of the Federation's military, while the Agnaktors constitute the Federation's economic power and the Mildari acting as its diplomacy and science experts._

 _Quite interestingly, four factions sprang into action upon the leader's declaration._

 _Two factions strongly approved Lord Ashford's desires; however, while one faction insisted on adopting a more xenophilic vision and open collaboration, the other one saw the four alien races as useful commodities to attain greatness and/or galaxy-wide domination._

 _The third faction chose to embrace isolationist opinion, citing that Humanity must be able to stand on its own. No aliens are allowed to interfere with how Humans live their lives. The last one, mysteriously, appeared to be 'swing voters', leaning towards multispecies teamwork but at the same time wanting aliens to stay out of their business._

 _So far, 7 out of 10 people agreed to support the establishment of an interstellar Federation, though we have yet to know whether it'll be realized anytime soon or be postponed until later._

 _ **-x-x-x-x-x-**_

 _ **SYLVON DEFEATED! SPOILS ARE SHARED EVENLY AMONG THE VICTORS!**_

 _Written by Karingar Darkplume, 3rd Flock Guardian of the Southern Guild_

 _A glorious day has dawned upon us! My brothers, noble men and women valiantly strode into battle, all with one purpose; to secure our victory against the despicable Sylvons!_

 _After days, weeks, and years of fighting the hegemonic mollusks and riding into battle alongside our worthy alien comrades, we have won! The spineless Council of Akantorin has been brought down, their cowardly nature is revealed to be pathetic and vain. Today, they are no more! Our future is safe for the moment, and our allies have proven themselves as worthy of earning our respect._

 _I hereby declare that we, Niven, are compatriots of the alien races!_

 _And thanks to them, we now possess a splendid amount of war spoils! A wealth of valuable resources has been donated to us quite generously by the Union lizards, I must admit. Several blueprints of strange and exotic technology is now available for us to study. Even more, we are entitled the rights to settle on two Sylvon planets!_

 _Our Compact has grown significantly bigger than before. The new planets shall provide us a boon in scientific revolutions, healthcare program, and most importantly a new frontier to explore. This is a period worthy of celebration by every Niven!_

 _Men! Women! We should all remember; this is just one small step toward the path of glory and prosperity! Let us hope for a better tomorrow. For the Compact of Cyran!_

 _ **-x-x-x-x-x-**_

 _ **UNION ACCEPTS FEDERATION PROPOSAL, MORE ALIENS WELCOMED INSIDE UNION SPACE**_

 _July 20th, Year 386, by Anista Sherman (in collaboration with Agnaktor Republic)_

 _Union Prime Chief Xen Alven has proclaimed on July 19th that our Union agreed to enter the interstellar coalition coined as "United Federation" by the Imperium of Terra, currently undergoing transformational steps into a democratic government._

 _On July 18th, the Chiefs and Overseers across Union Space contributed in an empire-wide discussion via the Union's most secure network. Inside sources whose name refused to be written clarified that the majority of the Union's governors voted to join the reformed Humanity and the allied alien governments. Over 68% voted yes on the topic, whereas 14% rejected the offer and the remaining governors chose to abstain. Unverified talks among the public had it that our Union as a whole might have to be restructured into a new kind of administration to accommodate the budding interests of fringe political groups, although nearly every member of the species avowed a desire to stay unified regardless of what will come next._

 _This turn of event eventually brought about rejuvenation in several sectors, primarily in economy, colonization, consumer goods manufacturing and education. With our Union's choice to embrace alien allies as our brothers-at-arms, it is hoped that our constitutional foundation and survival as a species will grow stronger in days to come._

 _Already there were talks in developing a more manageable intercultural exchange programs to avoid a possible repeat in racial misunderstanding, like what took place in the early days of Union-Council First Contact event._

 _As of the writing of this article, around 45 to 67 Mildari immigrants from Zulkana petitioned to open an embassy with the Indoraptor Union, hoping to improve the already existing mutual aid. Flocks of prospective Nivens from Cyris Prime had also been sending requests to found industrial complexes within Union Space, as well as offering to train Union soldiers in new ways of warfare. Furthermore, some unannounced letters sent by the Imperium's high-ranking officials were said to be asking for the Prime Chief's permission to visit our Earth for scientific research and observations._

 _ **-x-x-x-x-x-**_

 _Indoraptor Year 38_ _7_ _,_ _March 9th_ _,_ _Cognita (Ullyses system)_ _..._

"You're leaving now? Like, right now?!"

"Not today, but yes; I'm resigning from my position. I heard there's a new spot on the occupied planet we won from the Council. All things aside, I won't let this opportunity get wasted."

"But that planet is many light years away! Heck, even with our upgraded warp drive technology, it'll still take a long time until you get there."

"But we will meet again someday, right?"

Overseer Messana Iteran had stepped down from her position as the colony planet's Overseer.

It was almost a decade ago when she was appointed as the top administrator of the colony. Now, with new job opportunities being opened up and new worlds were under colonization progress, Mrs. Iteran had no more reason to stay, not while she harbored some resentment toward her old job. For years, people paid little attention to her work, save for her friend Salma. But then she proclaimed her resignation and suddenly people were paying attention to her, confused as to why she did it. Look at the planet now; more people were coming in to help build a better habitable city with interspersed villages to collect natural resources. There were some aliens too. They were comprised of Human farmers who enjoyed the heat of summer on Cognita more than anywhere else, and also Mildari architects and Agnaktor traders, working together to create a better life. Why would the resigning Overseer chose to step down?

Mrs. Iteran wanted to see the bigger world. She wanted to leave this boring excuse of an extrasolar colony. She wanted to experience the more exotic part of an interstellar civilization; the sensation of meeting and interacting with aliens. And with an occupied Council planet as the Indoraptor Union's spoils of war, she knew it'd be a matter of time before aliens fully coexist with her species.

Naturally, Salma called her out on this. Perhaps she thought Mrs. Iteran was being a loser for pulling out so hastily. Or Perhaps Salma believed that the older lady was having a misunderstanding of the situation and had to be talked out of it.

"Why won't you stay here? Stick around with the people you've already familiar with for years? This planet has been your home for a decade, you know."

"Yeah, I know, I don't need people telling me that. But you know why?"

"Alright, bite me. Why?" she finally asked.

"Almost ten years have I work here as an Overseer and barely anyone except certain people thanked me for all I've done. Right now I'm all done. I'm not gonna do anymore super-hard tasks that no one will appreciate or participate in." Mrs. Iteran spitefully blurted out. Being an Overseer meant that people should be doing things as ordained by the mid-tier director, especially because these Overseers reported directly to the Prime Chief back on Earth. If they did not do things the way the Prime Chief ordered, there would be penalties on both the Overseers and whoever they commanded.

"But I do appreciate your hard work!" Salma protested, stomping her feet like an upset little girl.

"Yes you always do, Salma. But does everyone else appreciate it? There are more than 25,000 Indoraptors living here and less than twelve percent of them actually congratulate me on any achievement I've done. The rest are nothing more than lowly common working-class folks of our society, never bothering with the complexities of administrative life cycle. I believe someone else is more deserving of the Overseer spot than I am." Mrs. Iteran darkly retorted, earning her a glare from the other female.

Salma was right to admonish her friend for her rash decision, but Mrs. Iteran wasn't the only one to try to move on to the new colony worlds.

Online newspapers reported how a great number of Indoraptors were planning to set off Earth to settle on these new planets, mentioning that an 'exodus' of ambitious prospectors were making a move to 'manifest their destiny' on the developing frontiers.

Mrs. Iteran was right that people were searching for a new life on the new colony worlds, but she wasn't entirely correct about those people's motivation; they were not truly abandoning their previous lives. They instead departed with the full commitment of building up a new future. Even the Grand Fleet has begun rebuilding ships they lost from the war, and not too long after more recruits were forwarding their names to fill up vacant spots.

But try to look at this problem from a different angle; was Salma unhappy at Mrs. Iteran for departing planet Cognita without solving her personal issues?

"I think I can see another angle at your proposal. You want me to give you one last good memory before I depart Cognita for good, is that correct? Do you want me to... how do I phrase this, hand you a farewell gift for you to treasure forever?" the older female inquired with a fixed stare.

"Ah, it's... no, I didn't mean that! What I wanted from you is to-"

"To resolve my social problems with those who truly knew me, am I correct?"

"Something like that, yes!" Salma nodded quickly, "Why don't we... celebrate this exodus plan of yours with a dinner somewhere? I think there's a gallimimus steak restaurant four block away from the colony capital complex. I'll call in the two bumbling guys to join if you don't mind them!" Oh damn, the usually stoic Mrs. Iteran couldn't hide her smile whenever her friend mentioned that one steak restaurant. Not a luxurious, high-class dining place for rich snobs but positively not an artless tavern either; just the perfect place for her to seek shelter from her daily routine.

"Well, uh... alright, I'll treat you this time. And please keep yourself from ordering that weird sweet drink with yellow bubbles. If you do, I won't pay for it."


	20. Chapter 20

**Paying Our Respects**

 _Indoraptor Year 38_ _9_ _,_ _July 20th_ _,_ _Earth (Union Space), War Memorial Park_ _..._

"It's been years, isn't it?"

"Yeah."

They were in an unspecified War Memorial park, spreading flower petals at the feet of tall cenotaphs built to honor those who fell in battle years ago.

Now Raizex had grown noticeably older and taller, collecting telltale signs of scars across his head and spine. He was now recognized as an 'Operations Chief' in the Union's Grand Fleet. Lyra, too, had become older and wiser through years of hard work. And yet, they quietly evaded all talks of marriage and family-building. Raizex, principally, wasn't too keen on settling down just yet for fear of abandoning her for the sake of duty.

"A long time has passed, yet the scars remain, memories of a tragedy long gone."

"That's borderline poetry. You're never a big fan of it, right?

"What do you know, anyway?" The female distantly commented.

If only he could openly talk to his family. In theory, Amena, his mother, was quite willing to let them continue with the existing relationship, but his family wasn't a well-respected name among the community. He'd rather not drawn attention to himself by getting married a little early.

"I do hope you'd introduce me to your Human friend."

"Bah, he's not that interesting."

"Well, you let some of your avian acquaintances to meet me the other day and I think they're not too interesting, either. What's keeping this guy from earning my admiration, by the way?" Lyra nudged further.

"He's stubborn, that's number one. Also, regardless of his handsome features, he's not the type to welcome women into his line of work."

"So... he's gender-biased?" Lyra clarified.

A nod from the young male was enough to satisfy her. He felt no need to inform her of the misfortune which befell Luke O'Brian; losing a leg, his previously injured leg, in battle was clearly not a good way to go, but the Human lieutenant pulled through and was reportedly going to be promoted to be a 'Lieutenant Commander' rank, complete with a high-tech prosthetic leg. Not sure if Lyra would appreciate the gory details, Raizex somberly thought, but even then he suspected the Human wouldn't want to appear in the public just yet. He, Vion, and the late Rivea did have some contact with the Human soldier, but not intimate enough to develop a long-lasting friendship.

But then he was reminded of his AI partner, Unit 47, and how the robot was pleasant enough to have around. Raizex wondered if the AI could be invited to this Earth without rousing uneasiness.

Even if he wouldn't admit it openly, the AI was one of the best people he'd ever worked with. A person who possessed intimate knowledge of multispecies relationship, one who did not disappoint its partners through unpleasant behavior or sheltered way of thinking. Unit 47 was the epitome of someone who got your back when you needed it so badly.

O'Brian? Maybe yes, maybe no. He simply didn't hold a candle to Rivea or Xivena.

"His determination to keep himself together spoke volumes of his stubbornness," the young male acknowledged after several seconds of silence, "but still, I'd rather keep you away from men, Human men to be precise, knowing how they relish on this idea of 'manly masculinity'... I think that's what they called the culture."

"Weird."

"Weird indeed," Raizex nodded.

There was no more use standing in front of the cenotaphs after the flowers had been laid around them, so the pair took their leave in an instant. The walk back to the exit was slow, but Raizex enjoyed it. He loved seeing the tall trees offering them cool shading from the sun's bright light; the scene reminded him of the old days when he and his girlfriend were roughly teenagers, just graduating from their school, not knowing what would they do in the near future. The quiet walk brought so many memories, ones which he remembered fondly.

They were getting quite close to the exit gates when they spotted them.

At the base of an old tree with grass surrounding it was the familiar sight of Lieutenant Luke O'Brian, sitting cross-legged with an also familiar robot, Unit 47. Luke wasn't really sitting cross-legged; he was laying his stumped left leg on the grass around him, his prosthetic leg lay near the accompanying AI robot. His pant leg was raised, revealing what's left of his leg, a bandage-covered stump ending just above his knee, scarred from whatever injury that costed him his limb. As the Indoraptors could see, Luke was visibly indignant at the sight of his missing leg, all the while talking sensitively with Unit 47 on how he let his stupidity got the better of him.

"If you have any more complaints you want me to record, please keep it for later," Unit 47 could be heard admonishing Luke in soft tone, "after all we are visitors on somebody else's planet. It would be wise to welcome them." It stopped just as Raizex and Lyra approached them, interested in joining the small chat.

"Right, okay, I know that I'm possibly afflicted with PTSD..."

"But it is not an excuse you can say whenever you do embarrassing stuff in the public."

A cough from Lyra gained her the AI's attention, "Pardon me for butting in, but what has he done that earned your ire?"

"Well, to answer your question," Unit 47 began in an awkward tone, ignoring Luke's gesture to not say anything to her, "Luke was found drowning himself in bottles of imported Niven alcohol in a bar somewhere a little close to a groundside port an hour after we landed. As we all know, Niven alcohol is relatively safe for you since you have... bits of avian DNA in your bloodstream, so to speak." The AI then made a sound similar to clearing one's throat before continuing, still oblivious to the Lieutenant's uncomfortable expression. "By orders of his commanding officers, I am to bring Lieutenant O'Brian in for detoxification. But seeing how embarrassing it'll be to let the public see him in his wasted state, a fresh air in a park would probably do the trick."

"Okay, that's it! I'm telling everyone you're such a terrible gossiper!"

"Believe it or not, your comrades are actually gossiping you starting from last week."

"Shall we leave them to their bickering, dear?" Realizing that Luke and his AI companion were going to verbally duke it out until much later, Raizex offered to take Lyra out of the memorial park as soon as their long legs could carry them. To his pleasure, the female agreed without a word.

 **-x-x-x-x-x-**

Later that night, the young male was holed up in his childhood house's bedroom, being contacted by plenty of people asking him if he's able to dedicate some time to talk face-to-face at scheduled days or just to say hi, much to his confusion.

The first one to book a meeting with him was Admiral Kalini Ender. He kept the call short and to the point; saying that he and a few other officers were discussing the likelihood of promoting him to a title in league of "Staff Commander", essentially putting him somewhat higher in their eyes. The admiral also revealed that he queried Raizex's longtime friend Vion Hyperion whether he would like to be promoted, and the other Indoraptor said yes.

Not much else was said beyond the line of ' _take a good care of yourself, will you? You have a long journey ahead of you._ ' Raizex shook his head as he disconnected the admiral's call.

The next call was vague, as in the caller refused to share his identity. Raizex suspected a lot of bad things from this guy, from a hacker to a blackmailing criminal, even though the caller assured him that he only wished the young male good luck and safety for him and his family.

A part of Raizex was so sure that this guy, whoever he was, could be his divorced father, although the other part of his mind wanted to brush it off as unfounded feeling.

The subsequent calls, from the third one to the fifth one, were practically nothing but praises sung by Niven soldiers who allegedly saw him fought alongside Zonae Silverwing in the war against the Sylvon Council. Huh, really, what was the charming point in that? He was no different than them; just doing his job on duty, nothing out of ordinary. Good thing they didn't take his time more than four to five minutes per call, otherwise he'd report them as spammers.

The next two calls were from one Adam Ryder and an Agnaktor claiming to be Xivena's next of kin. Both requested for a chance to initiate a non-formal conversation wanting to know more about his role in the war and the subsequent events after; the sacking of Sylvon secret facilities where they breed cloned slaves and wiping out Sylvon pirates who spawned left and right after the fall of the Akantorin Council.

He called them 'noodle incidents' not worthy of recognition. The Humans called them juicy stories for as long as the topic stayed hot in public forums.

The young Indoraptor felt irritated by how many schedules he had in his hands, but then he remembered that he could deny the invitations should he desire to do so.

" _We are honored to have you as an ally..._ "

" _I heard your name through my contacts who witnessed your prowess in combat..._ "

" _Do you mind if we establish a working relationship? We could learn from each other..._ "

" _The Republic wishes you a better future, brave one..._ "

" _Make us proud, Chief. You are truly a noteworthy person._ "

All those thoughts followed Raizex to his sleep. He decided to push them away for the time being, being too exhausted to think too much.

Honestly, from all those calls, the one he was confidently looking forward to was his future promotion to Staff Commander position, which meant he could choose whomever he wanted to work with. He wasn't certain if it meant he could work his way around bureaucratic labyrinths, but he'd undeniably try to bend the rules a bit should he ever needed it.

And with a huff, he laid his head on the thickest pillow he had and began snoring.


End file.
